Never a Hero
by NeonZangetsu
Summary: I never wanted to be a hero. I was always afraid of responsibility; terrified of failure. I never wanted to be a hero. I never wanted this body. Never wanted to be a hero. Apparently, fate had other plans. But after what I've done to the fabric of time...no. I'm not a Hero. Self-insert! Based on the new Dragonball Xenoverse game! My first self insert fic, so please be nice!
1. I Am Not a Hero

**A/N: Howdy, ya'll! I've been playing Dragonball Xenoverse as of late, and this idea sort of just came to me in a dream, as it were. I've been suffering through a bad breakup, and I must've eaten something weird, or played WAY too much of this game, because I had a weird dream.**

**Naturally it gave me an idea, and so I made a few tweaks to it. I'm honestly bracing myself for the backlash of even trying this, but in all honesty, I simply couldn't bear to let the idea die.**

**I thought of doing a Naruto crossover with this-let me know if I should!-but then I realized the aspect that truly makes the game great is that its you playing it; after all, you, the player are essentially the one Trunks wished for, in essence. Sure, it might be nice to write what everyone else was writing, but then I realized something; something I haven't done before. So...**

**Again, be sure to play the game yourself or at least familiarize yourself with it...**

**...else you'll be hopelessly lost. I'll leave it to ya'll to guess which aspects of my life written here are fiction and which aren't! Sorry if its short! Expect much more to come! As this is my first self-insert story, PLEASE BE NICE! I worked really, really, REALLY hard on this!**

_"I have a tail. A tail. Oh, dear god..._

_~?!_

**Wish**

I never believed in heroes.

Sure I admired them as a child, these icons of old, fictitious and otherwise. They were beacons of light in the darkness that was my life; ideals and icons in an otherwise bleak time. Who wouldn't want to be a hero? You save the day, beat the bad guys, save the world, and get the girl. Isn't that nice?

But reality has a way of hitting naive fools like me right in the hopes and dreams. It likes to take the mirror of your life and shatter it before your very eyes; beat those broken shards down so deep you don't even know they exist anymore.

Nope, I never believed in heroes. By the time I was an adult, I didn't even want to.

There, I said it. Monologue over. Plain and simple.

Perhaps now I can explain how I _became_ one...

* * *

It all started with a game. Pretty harmless, right?

_Wrong!_

I confess, I'm a major Dragonball fan. I've watched the show, read the manga, adored everything and everything about the fighting genre since I was a boy. I even took karate lessons, clawing my way to a black bet in my teenage years-long before I had to work two jobs to make ends meet.

Unfortunately, I hadn't touched an actual _game_ since the PS2 era. Ah, good times, those. Ultimate Tenkaichi ultimately drove me away from that scene for awhile; because let's face it, when you play crap-shoot like that with the combat system it'd ruin just about anyone's perception of the franchise. After that, between being engaged in home renovations and working all the time, I simply didn't have the hours to devote to gaming as I once did.

But anywho, back to the matter at hand.

Dragonball Xenoverse; when I finally scratched up enough dow and _time _to play it, I found myself pleasantly surprised by the content. This! Game! Is! Awesome! Nearly every waking moment not otherwise dedicated to work or my exceedingly distant bride-to-be was spent gaming. In no time at all I had three characters, a namek, male saiyan, even a frost demon-or Arcosian to those who prefer the term!-and found that this game, for all of the few flaws it had, was actually awesome.

Quite frankly, it was an escape. An escape from Walmart, construction work, and the books I wrote on the side. Insane, right? Who needs all these jobs-am I right? Well, how else do you expect to pay for a wedding?! I was getting married in the fall, so naturally, I needed all the cash I could scrape together. And for awhile I was content. I still didn't play all that much-maybe an hour, or two a day-worked, wrote my stories when I had a chance, and spent the rest of my off hours with that special woman who, unbeknownst to my family, I thought was the love of my life.

Until the bitch left me for some trucker in Arizona.

...

...

...

...yup. That happened. Just like that.

I returned late from work one such night to find her gone, her clothes packed, every bit of jewelry I'd ever bought her taken...

...and the note on my bed.

That hated, cursed piece of paper, one I damn to this very day. I still remember it, reading those jagged words:

_"I'm sorry, I can't do this anymore. We come from two different worlds and...I just can't do it. We're too different; I tried being normal but I can't I can't just can't. I'm sorry. So, so, so sorry. I never meant to hurt you but I met someone else. Someone from my hometown. You don't know him-_

**_Riiiiiiiiiiiiiiip!_**

Whatever else she might've written was torn to shreds in the next three seconds.

For a long moment, I didn't know what to do. I just stood there, feeling my life fall to pieces. Gone. Just like that. _Well...fuck._ A distant crackle of thunder echoed that thought. Without want or warning. Numb, I left the bedroom, stumbling into the den...

...and strangely enough, my Xbox 360 left on. Bitch! My first thought was that she'd done something to that, too. In my anger, I nearly smashed it. Only a supreme effort of will kept me from flying into a fit of rage. To my surprise, all she'd done was queue up a game Dragonball Xenoverse and create a character for herself. It was her.

Serah, or at least as close as she could've made a saiyan version of herself in the game. Strangely enough, another note awaited me, but I ruthlessly stomped it underfoot.

I found myself staring back at her, those dark, bewitching green eyes set in a heart-shaped face, framed by a long curtain of ebon tresses, a cocky half-smile tugging on her lips as she stared back at me; her small body wrapped in an orange-blue gi vaguely reminscent of Goku's. Bah, I liked Vegeta better. All hail the prince of Saiyans! But she'd always liked Goku...

For a moment, just a moment, I felt a painful tug in my heart. Another crackle of thunder. Jeez, that storm really was getting close. And yet still, my attention was drawn to the screen.

Odd. I didn't recall her ever creating such a character before. So why make one now, then leave? My first instinct was to delete it. After all, she was gone now, and lord knew I had precious little space on my hard drive already. As my finger hovered over the button in question, however, a glimmer of hesitation took me. Looking back, I couldn't quite say what it was; only that I didn't press that button when I should have. Instead, out of some forlorn desire perhaps, I chose CREATE instead.

_Reeeeaaaaaaaaaaaally_ should've turned the console off then, Ryan. But did I? Nope! Well, I'm sure you can guess what happened next. Like so many of those self-insert fics I oh so secretly enjoy; reality decided to take a backseat and let fate have her way with me.

Lightning.

It must have been lightning that struck my apartment; because nothing else made sense. One moment my finger was pressing the button, breathing life into Serah's character. The next, I was on the ground and all hell broke loose.

Next thing I knew, there was pain.

Every muscle clamped down, every cell of my being spasming in white-hot agony as my vision went black. Something exploded. So did I. Then, rising over the agony of my shout; a voice came. I could've sworn I'd had heard it before...

_**"Now, warrior, you have been summoned! Come forth!**_

_Oh fuck me-_

* * *

My first reaction when I woke wasn't pleasant by any means.

My mouth instinctively opened and inhaled, ready to spew curses, only to inhale liquid instead. I promptly spat it out, my eyes bursting open. Blurry images greeted me, followed by a profound realization. Water. Why, then, am I underwater? I hung there, disbelieving, trying to recall how or why I'd suddenly found myself immersed in the cooling liquid.

The last thing I remember was...wow. I really didn't remember much of anything beyond that blinding eternity of pain. Now I was..._swimming_, apparently?

Now, see, I knew that didn't make any sense. It couldn't. I'd played Xenoverse time and time again, and I remembered no such scene. Not at all. Believe me, I'd beaten this game forwards, frontwards and back. Such a scene could not, would not, and did not exist. There was no underwater scene here, and I certainly shouldn't be able to _feel_ anything-

After _that_ life-changing epitome, I realized something else.

I couldn't breathe.

_Lungs burning!_

Flailing madly I shot toward what I hoped was the surface, strong kicks carrying me towards the light. In my haste to escape I cleared the water a little too high; flopping onto the bank with a gasp. Huh. It didn't hurt as much as I'd expected it to.

I lay there for a long moment, chest heaving madly-why in blazes did it feel so heavy-struggling to catch my breath. A harsh voice coughed behind me, demanding my attention. Unthinking, I scrambled upright.

"Well...I'm definitely not in Kansas anymore...

Indeed, I found myself standing on a stone path that trailed off to a vastly green environment, surrounded by an equally bright sky with different planets floating within it. Once more that mighty voice thundered behind me, eliciting a sharp, very unmanly yelp of surprise. Putting that thought aside, I spun about, eyes tracking for the noise. Sure enough, there he was. _Shenron. _You know, the dragon? Big, green, scaly thingy? One who grants wishes? THAT Shenron.

My mind gibbered madly-momentarily struck dumb. It was like seeing the Eternal Dragon for the very first time. Just...

...wow.

Those eerie red eyes gazed at me for a moment longer, brightening.

_**"Your wish has now been granted!"**_ he thundered, _**"Farewell!"**_

_"Wish what now?! I didn't make any-_

Too late.

I could've sworn the smug bastard smiled as he disappeared, seven dragonballs shooting upwards from the pedestal, scattering away into the sky. I stared after them, slack-jawed, my hand still outstretched, as though I could somehow grab those seven spheres and bring him back, demand an explanation.

That was when it hit me.

This dainty limb did not belong to me. I wasn't exactly muscular by any means, but I considered myself somewhat fit. The limb I was looking at was small, its hand sheathed in a red, fingerless glove. Twitching, I risked a glance downward-and sure enough, found myself staring at a blue-orange gi. Most notably, at the slight swell protruding from it. My hand shot backwards, touching the ebon curtain of wet hair current plastered to my back, touching tresses that did not belong there.

_Not mine._

I risked a haphazard poke at my chest, flinching slightly at the strange sensation it evoked.

_Not. Mine._

One last time I reached backwards, only to find a brown, furry appendage hovering just over my rear. My eyes nearly bulged out of my head, snapping toward the tail.

_DEFINITELY! NOT! MINE!_

The voice that emerged was most certainly not my own, either. Bell-like and soft, tinged now with disbelief, it exclaimed loudly:

"Oh, FUCK me! FUCK! Fuck you Serah!" I ranted loudly, stomping at the ground. "Fuuuuuuuuuuuu-huh?" To my surprise that singular stomp had actually shattered the earth, creating a small, bowl-sized crater beneath my foot. Huh, indeed.

My attention was still fixated upon this new, horrid development when I heard the footsteps approach.

"He did it!" A familiar voice cried. "The wish really worked!"

My head snapped around hard enough to give me whiplash. Once again I found myself staring a legend; but this one hit a good deal closer to home. Trunks. The name snapped into my head immediately; not the foolish pansy of a boy from the Buu saga, or that piece of crap from GT, but the actual trunks from the Android Saga, tall-at least to my current height!-and imposing, veritably towering over me by at least a head. Kind, azure eyes fixated on me, perfectly calm, cool, and collected.

If only I could feel that calm again...

"Whoa, easy there." Trunks soothed at me, apparently seeing my panicked expression. "You can relax. Really. Its okay." _No! No, it is NOT,_ my mind wailed! _N-Not okay! At all!_ "I was the one who brought you here with that wish; you like you could be pretty powerful."

I deadpanned, not trusting my new voice.

Oh, sure. Powerful. Just inside the game, just trapped by some freak accident-

Oh.

_Crap._

I was stuck in the game. Trapped. Maybe forever. The realization nearly bowled me over, even worse than the discovery of my new body. Words failed me. Sense failed me. I, a normal, average human being, was now trapped in a world that by the laws of physics, should not even exist. A world of fiction. A place apart from reality. Oh bugger. Oh, sweet, bloody bugger...

"I...ah...

"Hey," I stiffened as a hand touched my shoulder as I started to hyper-ventihlate, no doubt trying to talk me down from what was clearly a panic attack. "I know its a lot to take in, "Yeah, no kidding! "Just try and take deep breaths." Under his guidance I willed myself not to explode. Under any other circumstance I might've reacted better, but waking up in a new-freakin' female!-body, in a world that you'd never thought to be real...

"I have no idea where to start." I sputtered. _Alright, champ, relax. Remember the game. The plot. Focus. Think! What happened after this? Does the script even apply here? If it did, I wouldn't be able to talk. But I can, for some strange reason. So clearly it follows the plot at least in some ways, which means, right about now, Trunks is probably going to-_

"Huh." As if sensing that very thought, his smile evaporated. "I just thought of something. Although Shenron _did_ bring you here, I'd like to put you to the test-if you don't mind. Just...think of it as an entrance exam." I watched, tense, as a hand rose to the sheathe at his back. Fingers clenched around the sword's hilt, freeing the dangerous weapon with a singular swipe. "C'mon! A good fight'll probably clear your head."

My face turned grey at the sight of his sword, its metal edge glinting deadly in the afternoon light.

_Yeah, just one problem there, Trunkie. I have no freaking idea how to fight without a controller, let alone how powerful I am! Karate probably won't do shit-for-dick against you! Shit! Shit shit shit, I have no idea how this body even works...this is not my day!_

"I hope you're ready!"

"Are you insane?!"

That was all I had time for before the sword came screaming down at my head!

And that's how it started.

I never wanted to be a hero...you could even say that I hated them. Didn't believe in them. No, I never wanted to be a hero. I never wanted to have that responsibility; that burden heaped upon my shoulders. The price of victory, the cost of failure...I'd always avoided stuff like that. Because I was always afraid to frail. Nope, I never wanted to be a hero...

...but apparently fate had other plans.

**A/N: Aaaaaaaaaaand there we go! My very first try at a self-insert story*blushes furiously*and I pray to god that I didn't do to badly. I'm a master writer when it comes to Naruto, Bleach, and other works of fiction, but they be just that. FICTION. This is me inserted into this story, bits of my life plumbed out before you, and, well, to be honest, its a tad embarassing. Especially the bit with me getting genderswapped. That was hard as hell to do, considering I am, most certainly, a DUDE and straight as a ruler.**

**But, eh, in this story, I thought I'd shake things up a bit...**

** Naturally, I plan to go more in depth with certain characters than most...including new events and all sorts of chaos as I plunge into the Dragonball Xenoverse! It'll make ya laugh too, I promise! God, I really am going to ruin time as we know it int this one...**

**So, in the Immortal Words of Atlas...**

**...Review, Would You Kindly?**

**...hope ya'll like it! And of course, enjoy the preview!**

**(Preview)**

_I wanted to cry._

_As if being trapped in the body of a saiyan girl wasn't bad enough; as if the possibility of my never returning home wasn't bad enough; now I faced this conundrum. My knees were firmly tucked into my chest, pushed rigidly up against my faded, battered gi. The source of my shame would've been blatantly obvious, even if not for the visible cloud of doom hanging over my head. Anger leaked from me like a cracked sieve, and poor Trunks didn't even seem to notice it._

_"Hey...you seem kind of down..._

_"KINDA?!"_

_I shot him a withering glare. _

_"Why the hell do I keep getting beat by Raditz?!"_


	2. Flux

**A/N: Howdy, ya'll! I've been playing Dragonball Xenoverse as of late, and this idea sort of just came to me in a dream, as it were. I've been suffering through a bad breakup, and I must've eaten something weird, or played WAY too much of this game, because I had a weird dream.**

**Naturally it gave me an idea, and so I made a few tweaks to it. I'm honestly bracing myself for the backlash of even trying this, but in all honesty, I simply couldn't bear to let the idea die.**

**I thought of doing a Naruto crossover with this-let me know if I should!-but then I realized the aspect that truly makes the game great is that its you playing it; after all, you, the player are essentially the one Trunks wished for, in essence. Sure, it might be nice to write what everyone else was writing, but then I realized something; something I haven't done before. So...**

**Again, be sure to play the game yourself or at least familiarize yourself with it...**

**...else you'll be hopelessly lost. I'll leave it to ya'll to guess which aspects of my life written here are fiction and which aren't! Sorry if its short! Expect much more to come! As this is my first self-insert story, PLEASE BE NICE! I worked really, really, REALLY hard on this! And there's also a cute little scene here, too...as well as a major shift in history...**

**...We're veering off course here, folks! Hope you've brought your tissues and popcorn, because it gets really emotional...and bloody as hell. Some TFS jokes in here too...**

**...I should also let you all know that I am currently jobless-FREE FROM WALMART! BANZAI! BANZAAAAAAAIIIIIII!-so now I have PLENTY of time to make these chapters-for all my stories, nice and long juicy! Hope ya'll enjoy. Those who like Raditz...yeah, he gets the shit kicked out of him...**

_"Never forgive. NEVER!"_

_~?!_

**Flux**

Instinct.

I'd never been particularly fond of the concept to begin with. That is to say, I've never been a very violent person, someone who rarely yielded to my baser emotions. Ever since I was a boy I never understood it, Weird, right? I was always suppressing it, restraining myself, holding back. Always, always _always_ holding back. I was never a dangerous person to begin with; more a lover than a fighter, if you'll excuse the pun.

If you're wondering when that first started to change, that very moment when I took that first step into violence, well...

...let me ask you question.

When someone swings a sword at your head, what do you do? Option A? You abscond; get the hell out of dodge, MOVE your ass out the way. B? Beg for mercy. Doesn't work so well in Dragonball, unless you're dealing with Goku; sometimes not even then. K? Well, to me, now, that's the fun option, involving skipping a few letters. Certainly not so, back then. What is option K, you ask?

_...kick that motherfucker as hard as you can._

For a moment as I saw my reflection in that blade, just a moment, I grasped it. That power deep within me.

_Instinct._

* * *

Trunks saw stars.

Merry, spinning galaxies swinging to and fro before his vision as the last of his ki drained away to nothingness. How long had he lain here? Seconds? Minutes? Hours? Days? He wasn't entirely certain, and that aside, his brain wasn't cooperating as it should have, nor was the rest of his body. It probably had something to do with the fact that he'd been beaten silly. Naturally, he was in no danger of dying -save from embarrassment -but it was a close second after the ordeal he'd just endured.

"Well?" a soft, deadly voice hissed at him from the fog of his mind. "You want to try that again, bub?"

...nope."

There could be no other word for it as he laid there, sprawled out on the tarmac, his vision spinning blearily in and out of focus. _Ouch! What a hit!_ _I-I didn't know she had that much power...!_ He was keenly aware of the blade -his blade!- pressed against his throat with merciless intent, forcing him to lay there. To think.

To remember what the _hell_ had just happened.

One moment this new arrival, this warrior, this saiyan summoned by Shenron, had all but cowered before him. She had paled at his sudden rush-looking as though she might faint from sheer fear. Kind soul that he was, he'd held back at the last instance, not wanting to hurt her too badly-

Then she hauled off and _clobbered_ him in the groin with her _heel._

What followed was something he'd never forget but would always fail to completely remember; the beating of a lifetime at the hands of a furious female.

In that instant, the single, simple kick, he'd felt it.

_Power._

All the strength went right out of him, his body going boneless. And now here he was, in no position to defend if she got any ideas.

"How?" He groaned. "I didn't think you were that strong...

"I'm not." she shook her head and took the sword away from his throat, ebon tresses flailing from the motion. Green eyes danced back at him, fading now to blue. Almost as if she were...no. That wasn't possible. What _was_ she? "You held back and I broke the guy code," came the continuation. "The rest was cake."

"Guy...what?"

The girl held up an informative finger, quoting eloquently:

"Thou shalt never kick a fellow dude in the nads! That was what I did." her finger pointed, jabbing him the chest." Kicked you there. In the balls. Nailed ya. Right in your poor baby-makers. Really should apologize about that. I know how it feels to get kicked there...

"Um...but you're a girl."

Her cheeks turned an atomic, majin pink, the bright, fierce look fading from her eyes. "Right...forget I said anything." If one could see a black cloud of depression, it would be hanging over her head right now. For a long moment he thought she was going to stomp on his balls again. Thankfully, she seemed to think better of it, lowering her booted foot to the ground. Those eerie eyes were still staring at him, though. Rather-at his blade.

"I like this sword." the girl mused, admiring the naked edge of the weapon in her hands. "Hell, its no head cleaver, but its still badass. I wonder...

"Erm, that's mine, miss...?"

"Ryan. No, wait. Serah." she glanced down and swore. "Blasted body...

By now, Trunks was seriously beginning to question the girl's sanity. Everything she'd said and done so far suggested she wasn't of sound mind or body_-ah how little he knew-_and granted, she _was _a saiyan, but he was also wondering exactly what era she'd been plucked from. Thankfully, her her casual dismissal of him was ignored in favor of attempting to reclaim his pilfered weapon.

"Well then, Serah, may I have my sword back?"

She grunted.

"Right right, Tapion gave this to you after the Hirudegarn incident, very special and all...

A jolt of surprise shot through him. That...that was personal! No one knew about that, even in the scrolls!

"How did you..?"

Serah shot him a bemused look; then to his dismay, reached down, grabbed him by the jacket, and hauled him to his feet. She was surprisingly strong, considering she barely topped five feet.

"Oh, Trunks," she sighed gustily at him, "You'll soon learn that I know a lot more about you than you'll ever know about me...a great deal." Without so much as another word she turned and strode away hips swaying; a gentle, unintentional dance. To his great shame, Trunks actually found himself blushing.

"So?" she paused, favoring a passing glance in his general direction. "Are you going to take me to the Time Nest or what? I've got a lot of frustration to burn off here, and I'll bet punching a weakling like Raditz ought to be cathartic." At his bafflement, that infuriating smile only grew. As if she _knew _what he was thinking, knew he had questions, and delighted in not answering them. How...how did she know all this?!"

When he tried to ask her this, Serah shot him a very saiyan-like sneer.

...lets just call it multi-verse theory. Anywho, I'm ready to give this thing a shot."

* * *

As it turns out, I was not ready.

_Not not not not!_

A thousand times not ready!

I thought I was; really, I did. My little bout with Trunks had done wonders for my confidence and so I listened to his little lecture about the Time Patrol and the like, ignoring the already-known minutia about preserving time, existence, blah, blah, blah and so on. I all but dragged him to the Time Nest, looked at the scroll, immediately grabbed said scroll, and off I went. I found it all inordinately funny at the time; woman or not, I was still older than Trunks, and I knew enough of his personality to read him like a book.

Things went south shortly after my arrival.

As in right...

...now.

* * *

_(Age 761...)_

I lowered my arms, gasping heavily, trying my utmost not to faint.

"Hah...hah...and stay down!"

Sweat beaded down my brow, stinging my already blurry vision. Every breath felt like a knife to my stomach; likely from the three broken ribs there. My hair was a mess, matted with blood and grime

Goku and Piccolo's prone bodies lay behind me, dead and unmoving. Damnit. Damnit! _DAMNIT! _It wasn't supposed to be like this! It wasn't! I fired off one final blast into the smoke, desperately hoping, praying that the demon was now truly dead, that I could, at least protect Gohan. Surely an attack like tha thad at least done something-

...is that all?"

Oh fuck. Fuck, fuck, fuckity, _fuck..._

What little command I had over my power abruptly deserted me as I met those vile soulless eyes staring at me from the fading smoke; my legs quivering, knees knocking together as Raditz, son of Bardock and brother to Goku, strode out to greet me. Here was an enemy genuinely trying to kill me, and I was suddenly scared shitless. No ambush this time to save me, no sudden burst of power, no deus ex machina to pluck me out of harms way.

I was well and truly boned.

Say what you will, but when I first saw Raditz as a child he...frightened me. Just think about it for a second. Ignore all the Raditz jokes and the utter mockery TFS made of him for a moment. Just a moment.

Here's a guy who came in, laid waste to Goku and Piccolo both. Someone who kidnapped Gohan, with every intention to mold him into a killer. Someone who Goku had to die, to _sacrifice _himself just to defeat. Now, this wacko was even stronger than he should be. Chills! It certainly didn't help how he was looking at me. Like a peace of meat. As if he wanted to...

_That_ fear ran deeper than anything I felt toward Frieza or Cell. He was stronger than me, and we both knew it.

I found myself in something akin to an out-of-body -ha!- experience as I watched myself get pounded every which way by the Radits...unable to defend whatsoever. Oh, I felt the pain, felt the force push my body in the decreed direction, but in my shock, I couldn't process any of it, much less counter. A punch to my right cheek was immediately followed by one to my left, which flowed into yet another strike to my stomach, and to that a chop to the now-exposed back of my neck, summarily sending me to me knees only to be blasted backwards by the merciless kick to my face once there.

"Aw, did that hurt?" he cackled. "HAVE SOME MORE!"

A boot shot out, shattering the rest of my ribs like glass. I grimaced, trying to curl into a fetal position in a vain attempt to hide my injury. The saiyan only laughed and kicked me harder. I bit my lip as ringlets of pained agony shot through my chest, determined not to give him the satisfaction. It only made him kick harder.

Raditz scoffed. "Is that it?"

I spat on his boot.

"Fuck...you..."

"I admit, I had high hopes for you; but if you won't join us, then you're no better than Kakarot. A traitor, to be put down...hmm?" he glowered down at me, disturbed that I'd actually managed to latch onto his leg. "Get off of me! I said get off!" A final kick to the face drove me to the brink of oblivion and left me dangling there at the edge.

_'Just hold on!'_ Dimly, I heard Trunks's voice through the capsule. _'I'll bring you back right now!'_

Yeah, I appreciate the effort Trunks, but its probably too late for that.

Through bruised eyes, I just managed to perceive his arm. Rather his hand; cradling a purple blast of ki, raised now, ready to strike down and obliterate me in one devastating stroke.

"Ah, Crapbaskets-

...DIE!"

* * *

I wanted to cry.

As if being trapped in the body of a saiyan girl wasn't bad enough; as if the possibility of my never returning home wasn't bad enough; now I faced this conundrum. My knees were firmly tucked into my chest, pushed rigidly up against my faded, battered gi. The source of my shame would've been blatantly obvious, even if not for the visible cloud of doom hanging over my head. Anger leaked from me like a cracked sieve, and poor Trunks didn't even seem to notice it.

Seventeen times.

Seventeen.

Times.

I had lost...seventeen times...to that weakling. Trunks knew that, too. Perhaps that was why he held his tongue as long as he did before I stormed out.

I sensed him long before I heard his footsteps; the one talent I had mastered, and in my opinion, the most worthless. What good as an extrasensory ability if you couldn't do anything with it?! I didn't have the durability of a Majin, the regeneration of a namek, tenacity of a human, or even the psychic talents of an Arcosian, one of Frieza's race. What did I have? A beaten, battered body, one who'd been beaten by Raditz.

_RA-DI-TZ!_

"What's eating you?"

"EVERYTHING!"

My head snapped up and I shot him a withering glare...

...and realized I _wasn't_ staring at Trunks. Oh, I could feel him nearby, but the face I was looking at distinctly reminded my of my second-favorite villain. Blank red eyes stared back at him, his expression inscrutable and unreadable behind the white cordon that mask his lower jaw. His head tilted, that jagged crest seeming to stab at the very sky itself as though eerie eyes regarded me. For a long moment, neither of us spoke. Then, at last:

"This seat taken?"

...no." Almost before I knew what I was doing I made room for him on the steps leading to the Time Vault. He sat without so much as a second glance-leaving me to try and ignore his tail as it swayed between us. Yes, I knew exactly who I was looking at. I'd created him, after all. Honestly, nothing here surprised me anymore. How wrong I was. But who is this stranger, you ask? Now that, _that's_ something I can answer.

_Frost._

I'd molded him on a whim as my very first in game character and played through all the way to the end with him; a towering, level eighty warrior that greatly resembled Cooler's fifth form. That he existed in this game made a twisted kind of sense, really. Did my other characters exist here as well? I couldn't help but wonder about that. Huh. If I recalled correctly I'd made a namek and a human, too...not a saiyan though, those were overkill and overpowered...

...if there was a god of irony, he was probably laughing at me right now.

"So what seems to be the problem, _Ryan?"_ he asked, voice rumbling like distant thunder. Holy crap, he even sounded like Cooler! That _definitely_ wasn't the voice I'd given him! And he new my name?! "I mean, besides the obvious fact that you have tits now, you look like someone just stepped on your tail." a deep, booming chuckle resounded through his faceplate. "Oh, I like that one. See what I did there?"

Somehow, I resisted the urge to do the same to him. No, I was trying to figure out something else. My mind scrambled, trying to come up with an answer for this; unexpected scenario, something that clearly defied the parameters laid out by the game. A snarky character whom I had created? Talking to me? Knowing me? What the bloody hell?! And more importantly...

How in the _hell _did he know who I was?

When I asked as much, I got slapped by that barbed tail.

"HEY!" I whined, rubbing the back of my head. "What was that for?!"

"For asking the wrong question." He replied flatly. "You're smarter than that. Its not why I know, but _how."_

...you're not making any sense."

"I see subtlety is lost on you, then." those broad shoulders shook, and I got the feeling he was trying very hard not to laugh. "Fine then, I'll be blunt:

"You think the System wouldn't account for something like this? You exist, so it makes sense that I would exist?" System? What System? Was he talking about the game's code? Or something else? In the end he didn't elaborate, and once more, I was left grasping at straws.

"Then answer me this; why the hell do I keep getting beat by Raditz?!" my hands rose, gesticulating wildly. "I mean, I kicked his ass with you every other time!"

"With the controller." a purple digit was raised sagely. "Its different when you're doing the fighting yourself, isn't it?"

I felt my face color behind the dark curtain of my hair. "No kidding...so, why?"

"Because you're not trying." came the deadpanned reply. Curse that infernal mask of his. I just couldn't read him with it! "If you were, you would have won by now; and you would have realized what's going on. C'mon, use that big brain of yours and think outside the box. Why do you think Serah left that note/character for you? Why did you press CREATE instead of DELETE? Why did she leave so suddenly? It's all right there in front of you."

"Again, making. No. Sense."

Frost gave me a long, lasting look, as though he desperately wanted to say something, but couldn't bring himself to speak. "You never were very good at grasping the obvious, were you?" He stood abruptly, his massive form towering over mine, casting me in shadow. "I'll let you think about that awhile, then. Saiyans have their own skills, after all."

"Cryptic, much?"

The Frost Demon snorted. "You know where to find me."

"No," I looked back, "I really don-

He was gone.

I frowned thoughtfully at the space Frost had only just occupied, still struggling to understand what he'd meant by it all. What made it obvious? What, exactly, was right in front of me? All I had were questions, and he'd done nothing but give me even more them. Insufferable bastard. And what did he mean when Saiyans had skills that no one else...had...

That was when it clicked. A line I'd once heard, spoken by the prince himself:

_Saiyans get stronger every time they fight. _Then another word._ Zenkai. _And I'd been beaten down...seventeen...times...how the hell had I forgotten that?!

_Oh hell the fuck yes._

Gathering myself up, I all but sprinted back into the Time Vault.

* * *

(Age 761...)

**_BA-KRAM!_**

Breath burst of my lungs in an explosive rush as the dust settled from the blast, my arms still coiled protectively around a small body. Adrenaline roared through my veins in a heady rush, my body coming alive even as I struggled with the realization that I was essentially standing at the heart of the Dragonball mythos, that moment where my favorite series had truly begun. It was like seeing it all over again. My senses hyper aware-a furious instrument, locked on every detail...

_Fight fight fight!_ My saiyan instincts screamed at me, aching for a challenge against their new-found power. Somehow, I managed to reign them in.

Despite the battle rush, I knew immediately where I was; it was impossible to forget, considering just how many times I'd been here. One of the first truly memorable scenes in Dragonball Z, that blasted landing zone-the place where Raditz had first landed his pod-now savaged with the scars of battle against Goku and Piccolo. I took a deep breath to settle my nerves as the smoke cleared...

"Um...who are you, sis?"

Ah, craaaaaaaaaaaapbaskets.

I hazarded a grin down at the boy who would someday destroy Cell, trying not to swoon at how utterly adorable he was. Without thinking of the consequences I reached down and pulled that giant ugly hat off his head, mussing his dark hair beneath. He sniffled softly, no doubt terrified out of his mind, and it broke my heart. Uncaring of the consequences-and _boooy_ would this come back to bite me!-I pressed a gentle kiss to his small forehead, holding him close.

"It's alright." I soothed as I let him go, putting as much persuasion into my voice as I possibly could. "You're safe now-OI?!" That was when the little bugger grabbed something he shouldn't have.

"Pretty..."

"Pretty?! Now see here you-gah! STOP THAT!"

Once more I sputtered incoherently as a pair of small hands closed around my tail from where it was bound around my waist...and pulled. I yelped, my body going boneless becoming a wet noodle in Gohan's grasp. Ah. So this was how Goku felt when someone grabbed his tail. Not fun! Not at all! I opened my mouth to tell him to _knock it the hell off_ but one look from the little boy turned me to putty.

"You're a saiyan...like me?"

"Yes, yes yes, I think we've already been through that! _Now lemme go!"_ I yanked my tail free with a thought, resisting the urge to swat him on the head with the furry appendage. Eye atwitching, I almost missed what he said next:

"A-Are you here to help my daddy?"

Right, I was here for that, wasn't I?

"Yup, I'm here to beat up your uncle, so just stay put, kid."

Then I realized one of two things. One, my back felt...warm. Very warm, in fact. Two...my hair was on fire.

On!_ Fire!_

"Owowowowow, hot!" I yelped like an idiot, dropping Gohan and reaching around to frantically pat my still-steaming back, stamping out the remaining embers there. My hair was a loss and I immediately knew it as I felt those singed tresses beneath my fingertips. I'd have to cut it after this. Thankfully, my outburst went unnoticed as the dust finally cleared, exposing me to the baffled eyes of Goku and the others.

"What the...?" Raditz's harsh voice carried across the field, nearly making me flinch. "Another saiyan?!"

I'm sure I looked quite the sight; on a whim, I'd equipped myself with Vegeta's very own Namek armor from my inventory_-thankfully scrubbed clean of that garrish blue color and made red- _and an equally red scouter before setting out, mostly for shits and giggles. Hey, if I was going to be trapped in this world for an unknown duration, I might as well make myself comfortable. Besides, those shoulder spikes were just stylish...and I'm sounding like a girl. Uh, please ignore that last part...

_Please?_

Regardless, Raditz was looking terribly confused, even moreso than Goku and Piccolo. To his eyes, even with my tail half-curled inexpertly around my waist, I looked like a saiyan warrior. A _female_ saiyan warrior at that. Now I knew for a damned fact that there logically weren't any such saiyan survivors, but Raditz didn't; I was counting on it to make him lower his guard at least a little. Hey, don't look at me like that. DON'T! All's fair in love and war and this was _war!_

Besides, with that nasty power increase, well...I needed every advantage I could get. Radtiz was brutal to begin with, but now...

"No. Was it the tail that gave me away?" I scoffed, aiming for the arrogance of a certain prince. "You.**..IDIOT!"** It worked, judging by his flinch. "What exactly do you think you're doing?!" My chin jerked toward Gohan's trembling form, a cruel sneer forcing itself across my face, the motion sending my hair tumbling like a broken halo. "If he's even _half _saiyan then we can use him! Don't go blasting him like that-

**KA-POW!**

Whatever Raditz might've said died as he found his face filled with a volley of white-blue ki. Sure enough his scouter hadn't been swift enough to alert him; by the time he realized what I'd intended he'd gotten a mouth full of energy. The subsequent blast ripped him off his feet and sent him flying feet of teakettle across the field. Another blast caught him straight in the chest-while a third brought the hill down on him, burying his body beneath a small mountain of rubble.

When no pyrotechnics followed everyone heaved a collective sigh of relief.

"That's my job." I finished with a smirk, lowering a steaming hand. Hey, I was getting the hang of this! Pride coursed through my veins, loosening my tongue. "AHA! Finally got you, motherfucker!" Aaaaaand there went my cool image. Gone, Right out the window. I very nearly did a victory dance, such was my enthusiasm.

_"Oh, now you've done it."_ Trunks's voice groaned in my ear. _"You'll just have to come back and try again...what?"_ a note of surprise entered his voice._ "It-It isn't working?! Something's wrong! I can't bring you back yet for some reason! Whatever you do, just stay put!"_ I barely heard him.

"Um...a little help, here?"

I stiffened, realizing I wasn't as alone on the field as I thought. Something else, too.

_"Ohcrapimmastandingonhischest!"_

Hastily, I hauled Goku to his feet, struggling slightly with his weight. He'd taken a bad beating from Raditz; he wasn't in any shape to fight. Piccolo on the other hand...

"Someone you know, Goku?" said namek growled, eyeing me warily. "She certainly seems to take after you." I couldn't help but notice he was eyeing my tail; no doubt trying to assess if I was the greater threat or not, being a saiyan. Gee, I'd almost forgotten what a suspicious, dangerous _bastard_ he was in the beginning...

"Oh shut up, namek." I huffed, rapidly working to wrap my mind around the situation. You'd think that, as a writer, I'd have a better concept of alternative universes. Living in one? Not so much. Ah, but he _was _waiting for an answer, wasn't he? "I'm not going to attack you, namek." I said at last, hoping the statement would attract his interest.

"Namek?"

It did.

"Yup." My head bobbed sagely. "Your race. Also your planet. Meaning you're not a demon. More of a slug-man, actually."

He scoffed. "I liked it better when I was a demon."

"And _I _liked it better when you you kindly shut the fuck up."

"That depends. Are you going to stop talking."

"Maybe," I planted a hand on my hip, "Maybe not."

At that, Goku finally seemed to find his voice. "Hey, uh, Piccolo? Maybe we should be thanking her...

"You really think she's not another enemy?" the green warrior refused to lower his guard.

"Yeah...after that, I'm pretty sure she's someone we can trust." he shot me a cheery grin as he said this, reminding me very much of a child. "Thanks for saving Gohan, back there. I owe you one! You're pretty strong, aren't you?"

"Stronger than you, yes." the words popped out before I could hope to stop them. Shame overtook me in the next instant. This was GOKU. I might be a tad stronger than him now, but he was going to dwarf me in only a few years. "Er, ah...I mean..." Impossibly, he didn't take offense. In fact, his grin only grew.

"Yeah, I can tell! Hey, you don't seem like a bad person; maybe we could spar sometime!"

An uneasy silence followed those words. I dared a tentative smile.

"Sure, why no-

"LOOK OUT!"

Thaaaaat was when things went sideways and the past got screwy.

One moment I was standing there; the next, Goku shouldered me aside and out of the way.

Time seemed to unfold most slowly after that; I was tumbling backwards, stumbling, baffled by his sudden action and Piccolo's peculiar inaction. Why did he shove me? Why would he do something like that? Then I saw why, my own scouter beeping a warning at the sudden buildup of energy, shrieking loudly in my ear-

_No._

Even as I reached out to stop what I knew would be a fatalistically heroic act, a beam of solid light surged forwards into the space I'd just vacated. Ripping through the saiyan's stomach like wet paper and drilling him to the cliff wall in a bloody shower of gore. Just like that.

Fired with such speed and concentration earth's greatest defender stood no chance; the moment I saw the blood, I knew he was dead. He'd been blasted clean through, his organs vaporized by the ki. My heart dropped deep into my stomach and then deeper, plunging straight through to the floor. I wasn't sure at what point I found my footing again, only that I did; that I was holding his head in my lap, looking down at him in disbelief at what he'd just done.

"You...You stupid idiot! Why did you do that?!"

And what did he do? The bastard laughed. Laughed, as though he'd planned this all along.

"S-Sorry, you'll have...to take it...from here...

Goku's hand reached up and grasped mine, squeezed...then fell slack to the ground. My heart stopped.

Oh, no. No no no no no...

"GOKU!"

"DADDY!"

Somewhere behind me, I heard Gohan's wail. My head dropped, hiding behind the curtain of my singed hair. The scent of blood and cooked flesh filled my nose, searing through my nostrils and making me gag. No. This wasn't fair. I knew he was destined to die this once, but not like this, not taking a blow meant for me...

No...

"HA! Serves you right! Did you really think an attack like that could defeat me?!" a dark voice crowed, black in its exultance. "ME?! The great Raditz?!"

Raditz.

To my great dismay, the bastard had actually gotten back up and emerged from his impromptu coffin of stone. With only minor cosmetic damage. His armor was cracked and he was missing a few teeth, nothing more. I was suddenly dangerously reminded of Recoome...minus the flamboyant posing. As I looked on that same dark aura bled into existence around him, his eyes flashing an eerie crimson as though lit from within. And...I'd forgotten all about it.

And because of that, Goku was dead. Dead. All my fault. Dead. My own arrogance had gotten him killed. Somehow, that made it even worse. It didn't matter whether we had the dragonballs or not; it was still my fault-I was responsible. Me. MINE. A good man had died to save a nobody like me...and...and...

"Damnitall...!" Piccolo dropped into a ready stance, sharpened fingers clenched into claws. "I won't go down without a fight!" That was when he felt it.

**Ba-dump.**

_'This power...where...where is it coming from?!' _His eye was drawn to the saiyaness, the sudden spark that leapt from nowhere._ 'Her? It's...massive...'_

"You there! Woman!" Raditz must have missed the way my entire body twitched or was royally pissed himself, because he plowed headlong into the thick of it-unaware of his imminent demise. "I hope for your sake that you don't plan on jumping in with a power like _that. _You're next if you do!"

...I'm next?"

My head cocked loosely aside, eyes dancing with flecks of green. Slowly, gently, I set Son Goku down on the ground, careful not to disturb his corpse.

The namek must've sensed the coming storm before I did; because he shrank back the moment I stood. Woodenly without a care-like a puppet severed from its strings. My memories of what happened next are foggy at best; Trunks tells me I'd genuinely frightened him even worse than the Androids, that my brutality went beyond even the Legendary Super Saiyan himself. I don't know. I don't care.

Simply put, I snapped.

"Never forgve," I muttered, "Never forgive you. Ever."

"Now just calm down!" Trunks was shouting at me through the capsule earpiece. "You need to-

Whatever else he might've said died in an electronic squeal as I crushed it in my hand.

Then I started walking.

"Hmmph, saiyan or no, you're just another weakling." Raditz scoffed, glimmers of ebon power shooting through his aura. "Lets see what we have...what? Nine hundred? W-Well! You're still nothing compared to me!"

I kept moving, uncaring of his word, the endless animal bleat

"You worm!" Snarling he shot forward, intent on crushing my throat-

-and was blocked.

My arm shot up, blocking a hammerfist that, by rights, should have shattered my wrist.

"You killed a good man." When I spoke it felt like another was speaking with me, _through_ me, somehow. "Now...I'm going to kill you." Then I kicked. Hard.

My heel shot up, catching him in the chin and booting him away as though he were Yamcha. He caromed of a small hillock and bounded upright, ki clenched in his fist. Thoughtlessly I reared my head back like a cobra's, inhaled violently, and spat; expelling a wave of ki the likes of which would've made Nappa proud. Raditz...

...not so much...

"What the hell?!"

I was only distantly aware of his yelping cry as the Break Cannon, true to its name, cannoned into him, shattering armor and searing flesh. I laughed and blasted him again, reveling in the screams of agony that chased his retreating body down the gorge. It wasn't long at all before he reappeared. Pride, and whatnot.

"W...What have you done?"

Apparently, burned him.

Badly.

I watched, silly with satisfaction as he stumbled out of the crater, and took stock of my handiwork. And what a work it was. Radits had barely survived; most of his armor gone save for a few pieces below his thighs, his torso horribly bloodied and burned. Not enough.

I wanted him to suffer _more. _

And with this strength of mine, he would. So much power. I didn't know what to do with it. Its just...kinda there. I still don't know what brought all that power out, but somehow, this body of mine knows enough to put up a fight. Instinct. Yes, that's what it is. I don't think, don't reason; I just give myself over to these strange new impulses. And that was precisely what I did now. I advanced on him, relishing in his fear...

And the energy guttered out.

My eyes snapped open wide, the blues of my eyes turning pure white, lost against the sclera.

_No._ I gritted my teeth together until I was certain they'd shatter, forcing my unstable energies to obey, to do what _I _wanted, not the other way around. _No more. I...am...tired of...losing to this guy! SICK AND TIRED OF IT! _I reached deep within, past the anger, past the frustration, past the mind-numbing despair, finding reserves I never knew I had. Raditz scowled at me, unable to understand what was happening. I didn't blame him. At the very moment, something awoke inside of me, the beast howling free from its cage.

I reached...

...and I screamed.

* * *

"GOD FUCKING DAAAAAAAAAAAMNIT!"

Raditz balked at the sudden upswing of golden energy, black eyes bulging. His scouter keened a warning, thin fractures appearing against the green glass as the energy before began to rise rapidly, swiftly overtaking all his power, scoffing, and rising even higher. Storm clouds blew in, the skies darkening overhead as the saiyaness brought the lion's share of her power to bear.

"Wha...What is this power?!"

_**"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"**_

"Hmm? One thousand?" he gawped as the number steadily continued their callous climb. "No, wait, now its-a thousand...a thousand and five hundred? Two thousand? Three?! _FOUR? FIVE_?_** SEVEN?!** _No, now, its over NI-_GAH!" _With a keening shriek his scouter exploded, showering his left eye in shards of broken glass and metal. "W-What is this?! What are you?!" She was laughing now, uncaring for the disbelieving stares sent her way. Madness! This was madness!

It was over nine thousand, and still rising! There was no way she could increase her power that much! "WHAT ARE YOU?!"

"Death."

Blank white eyes stared back at him, hooded and furious. Then she smiled, flashing pearly white teeth in the storm. It was not a pleasant thing, that smile. Then she said a word. A single, solitary, unnecessary word, that spelled his doom.

_"Kaioken."_

* * *

Leagues away, a rotund blue deity jerked awake, just in time to stumble out of his lawn chair. Attenae twitched.

_"What did she just say?!"_

* * *

Raditz was of the same mind.

"Kaio-wha-AAARGH!"

In the time that it took him to form that sentence, the angry saiyaness leapt at him with a snarl, her golden aura now tinted orange by the scarlet energy, her dark hair crimson. Before he could react to this change, the berserker flowed around him, grabbed his arm, and wrenched it behind his back. Then, just as he felt the bone begin to break, she pulled even harder on his right arm. No matter how hard he struggled, he couldn't tear himself away from the deceptively tiny girl's grasp.

"You...wench!"

"Oh, that hurts my heart. Really, it does." Her teeth flashed out in a snarky grin. "Whatcha gonna do? Spank me? I don't think so. Your crimes have caught up with you. Do you see him?" Using his arm as leverage, she forced him to look at Piccolo, the Namek's disbelieving stare showing he was just as baffled by the sudden increase as he. "That guy hated Goku's guts. And even he wouldn't have taken a cheap shot like that. And him, Gohan, to gaze into the angry, teary eyes of his nephew. "You took his daddy away. He's probably enjoying this more than I am.

"When I get out of here-

"You must be so proud of these arms," she continued with a hiss, stroking his captured limb, "Very...attached. You've killed countless people with them, innocent people like Goku, helpless people...how does it feel to be helpless now, hmm?" When he tried to struggle she only pulled harder, eliciting a pained snarl from her large victim. "Huh?! How does it feel to be the weak one, RADITZ?! To know that no matter what you do-what you try-what you say, that you're going to die today?! I bet it feels really crappy! Well imagine feeling that way every second, of every day!"

"Let go of me!"

"As you wish." She did just that, relinquishing her hold upon him. To his disbelief he found himself free. Yes! This was his chance!

"HIYAH!"

A fist thundered into her face with all his might, hoping to strike her dead.

Nothing happened.

She smiled, grinning as a trickle of blood ran down her forehead. Her hand locked around his limb and then he was flying, spun around in a relentless dragon throw that sent him hurtling into the heavens. A spike of raw agony seared into his spine, hurtling him to earth just as swiftly as he had ascended.

_Ground._

Like a falling meteor he struck the soil; landing with enough force to crush a lesser man, the impact sending his now-fractured ribs screaming in agony. A bloodied boot entered his vision, lifting his chin to look up at his tormentor. Hardened eyes of coal met his, sneering down at him with more contempt than even Vegeta could hope to muster.

"Lick it." she demanded.

A defiant snarl tore past bloodied lips.

"Never!"

"My turn, then." the scarlet aura of the kaioken surged even brighter around her, a living aura of flame encasing her body, boosting her strength even higher. "I don't need this to take you down...but I'll use it anyway. I want you to know just how powerless you are before I send you to Otherworld! Fear me, Raditz! Fear me and know despair!"

Desperately he scrambled upright, readying his aching arms for the assault. One question leapt to the forefront of his mind. "What the devil _are _you?!"

"I already told you...I'm death."

Then the smaller saiyan set upon him like a banshee, ripping and rending and tearing with her limbs. She was everywhere and nowhere all at once, her hands unerringly striking at his weak points, effortlessly deflecting his pitifully slow-to her eyes-blows, batting him around like a child's play thing. She was laughing at him, calling him weak, worthless, nothing, nothing at all-

_'Y-You've got to be kidding me! I'm being...pressured!'_

"WHY?!" he roared, his frustration causing him to swing with far too much force, leaving him off balance and vulnerable when she dodged. "Why are you so much stronger than me?!"

"Because you are an arrogant!" She yelled at him, thundering a punch into his ribs.

"Blind!" Another kick came screaming into his face, bloodying his nose and bludgeoning an eye.

_"Stupid man!"_ She emphasized these words with one final, debilitating kick to his disbelieving visage, sending him shooting across the crash site like a falling meteor. "You'll never amount to anything, and you'll never measure up to me until you learn what those bonds mean!" Before he could react, she grabbed both of his arms and yanked with more force than he could ever hope to match.

_Pain._

That was his first and only thought as the limbs flopped bonelessly away just below the shoulders, still spouting blood. Someone was screaming-he was screaming-spitting mindless gibberish as his back slammed down against the grassy plains, as her booted foot found his chest. He was trapped, much the same as he'd trapped Kakarot only a few moments before. It was galling, terrifying even, to see this angry goddess looming over him like an angry specter of death, come to reaper her reward.

"And now," she purred, "You are going to Hell."

Even as he struggled to raise his head, to speak ,she was there, fingers splayed before his face. Fear filled him; too late, as he saw the swelling crimson sphere in that hand.

"P-Please, mercy-

Her scowl deepened.

"Raditz_...I am dissapoint."_

A baffled silence followed.

"That's not even a-

His words ended in an furious, gasping gurgle as a crimson blast of ki immolated him utterly. Nothing was left, not even bones. Eventually those ashes fluttered away on a breeze, leaving only the shattered remains of a still-transmitting scouter attested to his existence at all.

And just like that, without even trying to do it...

_...I changed the future._

**A/N: Aaaaaaaaaaand there we go! I've already screwed up time, without even trying! Oi...**

**Remember, this is my veeery first try at a self-insert story*blushes furiously*and I pray to god that I didn't do to badly. I'm a master writer when it comes to Naruto, Bleach, and other works of fiction, but they be just that. FICTION. This is me inserted into this story, bits of my life plumbed out before you, and, well, to be honest, its a tad embarassing. Especially the bit with me getting genderswapped. That was hard as hell to do, considering I am, most certainly, a DUDE and straight as a ruler.**

**But, eh, in this story, I thought I'd shake things up a bit...**

** Naturally, I plan to go more in depth with certain characters than most...including new events and all sorts of chaos as I plunge into the Dragonball Xenoverse! It'll make ya laugh too, I promise! God, I really am going to ruin time as we know it int this one...**

**So, in the Immortal Words of Atlas...**

**...Review, Would You Kindly?**

**...hope ya'll like it! And of course, enjoy the preview!**

**(Preview)**

_"You, there! Woman!"_

_"Eh?"_

_He regarded me with contempt at first...then curiosity. Honestly, I preferred the contempt. "You're the one who annihilated Raditz, aren't you?" he said, "And now Nappa. Hmm. Let's see here." To my horror, that grin grew, becoming a sly sneer. _

_"Thirteen thousand and twenty?" Momentarily, I balked at his statement._

_I Had that much Ki?! No wonder Nappa was so weak!_

_"I must admit, I AM impressed. Perhaps you'll be able to entertain me until Kakarott arrives." My heart and mind reached the same conclusion as Krillin and Gohan in the same instant._

_Oh shit. Shit shit shit!_

_"G-Get away!"_

_Heedless of my fear, the prince advanced._

_"Now then, with the Namek out of the way, why don't we get rid of the small fry and see what you're made of-HA!" _

_My hand shot up, effortlessly interposing itself between Gohan and the blast. Pain engulfed my palm as a I made a fist and extinguished it-I vailiantly fought not to let it show. I knew that above all else, Vegeta despised weakness. Showing that weakness only guaranteed a quick death._

_"Impressive. I'll tell you what, I'm feeling merciful today." A glove hand flicked outward, indicating the prone bodies I was protecting. __"Be my mate, and I MIGHT spare your friends."_

_Ah, crapbaskets._

_In hindsight, it was rather ironic. I'd always liked Vegeta; not just as character but as an ideal; a person, if you will. Think about it, he'd gone from being one of the most vile villains in all of dragonball to one of the best anti-heroes in existence. But right now? Rage. Blind, maddening rage, swirling up from the depths of my being._

_I snarled._

_"I...am...going...to...KILL YOU!"_

_Before I could heroically rush and get myself killed however, the prince raised a hand._

_"Tempting as that is, I have a better idea." A sphere of glowing saffron formed in his hand. "Do you know what this?"_

_I did. Oh, crap..._

_"Lets see if you can control yourself."_

_I saw the power ball too late._

**_Urk!_**

**R&amp;R! =D**


	3. Bonds and the Birth of a Legend

**A/N: Howdy, ya'll! I've been playing Dragonball Xenoverse as of late, and this idea sort of just came to me in a dream, as it were. I've been suffering through a bad breakup, and I must've eaten something weird, or played WAY too much of this game, because I had a weird dream.**

**Naturally it gave me an idea, and so I made a few tweaks to it. I'm honestly bracing myself for the backlash of even trying this, but in all honesty, I simply couldn't bear to let the idea die.**

**I thought of doing a Naruto crossover with this-let me know if I should!-but then I realized the aspect that truly makes the game great is that its you playing it; after all, you, the player are essentially the one Trunks wished for, in essence. Sure, it might be nice to write what everyone else was writing, but then I realized something; something I haven't done before. So...**

**Again, be sure to play the game yourself or at least familiarize yourself with it...**

**...else you'll be hopelessly lost. I'll leave it to ya'll to guess which aspects of my life written here are fiction and which aren't! Sorry if its short! Expect much more to come! As this is my first self-insert story, PLEASE BE NICE! I worked really, really, REALLY hard on this! And there's also a cute little scene here, too...as well as a major shift in history...**

**...We're veering off course here, folks! Hope you've brought your tissues and popcorn, because it gets really emotional...and bloody as hell. Some TFS jokes in here too...**

**...I should also let you all know that I am currently jobless-FREE FROM WALMART! BANZAI! BANZAAAAAAAIIIIIII!-so now I have PLENTY of time to make these chapters-for all my stories, nice and long juicy! Hope ya'll enjoy. Those who like Napa...yeah, surprise! I'm pulling a hard left here!**

_"You only live twice; once when you are born...and once when you look death in the face." _

_~Ian Fleming._

**Bonds**

Irony sucks.

That is all I have to say about it.

TIme is not supposed to be complicated. Its a one-way street at best; one in which you live out your life going eve so slightly further along the grand highway of the universe. Of course, that was before human beings went and invented time travel and let's face it, that just made things that much more instance, what would happen if someone found themselves cast adrift in time, trapped, unable to return to their era-or their world for that matter!-unaided and alone.

Namely, me! I've gotten myself stuck in the Saiyan saga with, at present, no way home!

Which leads to my current predicament...

* * *

"Can I call you big sis?"

I looked down at the little boy in my lap and tried not to panic. Needless to say...

...I failed _horribly._

Now, I knew Gohan was only four years old, but I felt very _uncomfortable_ hearing that from a child-any child really-certainly when said child was sitting squarely in my lap. _Especially_ considering said child was male and I'd once been of the male persuasion myself before all this hocus-pocus. Why is he in my lap, you ask? Simple. I'm a big softie. What? Hey, don't look at me like that! I'm only human! Great-now I'm quoting the titles of my stories...

Look, the poor kid wouldn't stop crying now that his daddy was dead, and _Piccolo_ certainly wasn't going to do anything about it, so...

"Sure, sure." I muttered half-heartedly, stroking his black hair in a vain attempt to soothe my nerves. "Call me whatever you want."

That got a grin from the teary kid. "M'kay! So, you're...you're one of the good guys, right? You're really strong!"

I couldn't help but preen at his simplistic view of the world and my strength. "You bet!"

"Stop pampering the boy!" Piccolo snapped at me, his deep voice an almost animal growl by comparison. "Its pathetic!"

"Well _excuuuuse_ me, big green," I quipped dryly from where I sat, "If you want to do something about it, then come over here and do it!"

"Grrr...!" The namek growled at me, but I growled right back, baring my teeth and refusing to flinch. We were both exhausted after facing Raditz, but I knew it a heartbeat that the Namek wouldn't back down. Just as I knew that, if the Earth was going to stand any chance of surviving in the future, I couldn't afford to alienate him now.

"Alright, alright," I huffed, shaking my head woodenly. My body barely had the strength to stand after expending so much energy-definitely overkill!-but I did anyway, propping Gohan against my hip with one hand, and extended the other in an olive branch of peace. "You heard the scouter. The saiyans will here in a year. Maybe less. Now I know all about your designs on this world-and I _could _stop you here and now-but then I'd stand no chance against them myself. I say we call a truce."

Piccolo eyed my limb as though it were a snake; ready to rear back and bite him. "And you know this how? You crushed that last one easily."

"Perhaps. But the others are far, far stronger. Right now, Vegeta could crush me with his little finger. So?" I gave my hand a shake. "Whaddya say?"

He looked like he'd swallowed a lemon and I scowled at it. "Look, buddy, I don't much like it either. You want to rule the Earth? They've got to go."

"This could be a trick, an excuse to make me lower my guard-

He almost missed my sigh.

_"Special Beam Cannon."_

I turned and pointed two rigd fingers past the angry alien's head and let loose with my ki, neatly obliterating a nearby mountain with a single, concentrated blast._ Whoo._ There went the rest of my energy. Gohan stared goggle-eyed at the massive mushroom cloud that had once been an equally large mountain, and Piccolo shared in his disbelief, if his dismayed grunt was any indication.

"See?" I huffed. "You _felt _the power behind that. If I wanted you dead, you'd be just that. _Dead."_

"My technique?! How did you...how did you do that?!"

I grinned, lowering my arm. "I'm a smart girl. Why wouldn't I want to learn from powerful beings like you?"

My reverse application of his Ultimate had the exact effect I wanted; namely, my favorite anti-hero realizing he was outmatched and had no choice but to ally with me if he wanted to survive. Not that I'd ever try to kill him of course-because let's face it, Piccolo is the definition of awesome and my second favorite character-but he didn't know that now, did he? And I'd just given his ego a massive boost to boot.

...evidently so. Alright, you've made your point." His hand gripped mine momentarily, sharpened nails digging into my smaller palm. "Truce. For now. But when these Saiyans are gone-

-I'm next, I know." I beamed._ Won't be happening! _"And Goku, once he finishes whatever Kami has planned for him...

"Um...sis?"

_Urk._

"Oh, right." I blinked, remembering Gohan in my arms. "Here." My arms offered the baffled boy to the namekian. "You might want to take this one with you. If he's got anything like the power you just saw in him...

...good point. We might need him. But why not you?"

"I'm...not good at training others." I confessed, flushing. Plus, Gohan was the one responsible for softening Piccolo. Not me. "It'd probably be better if you took him with you." Realizing the boy in question was about to have a nervous breakdown, I quickly switched gears. "Gohan, sweetie, I need you to trust me on this, alright? He's going to train you for the next year. Do everything he says...erm, unless it involves ruling the world, I mean. Trust me; you have an incredible power deep within you...and we're going to need that power against the saiyans."

Honestly, I expected him to burst into tears. Wasn't expecting the little guy to gather up his resolve.

"Are...are you going to fight them too, sis?"

My head bobbed an affirmative, sending my hair swaying.

"Sure am."

"Th-Then I'll fight, too!" He enthused, then paused, glancing nervously at the namek. "You'll come visit, right? W-While I'm training with Mr. Piccolo?"

"Of course. I'm not going to leave you alone with a demon!" My grin grew at the latter's sour expression and I nearly guffawed. Who knew? All he needed was a little nudge...

"Thatta boy!"

The namek shrugged. "Have it your way, then. But don't be surprised if I surpass you both."

My grin was entirely saiyan.

"I look forward to it. You'd better get started, then. I'll stay here and give the news to Goku's friends. I don't feel like repeating myself a third time. Now, get!" Evidently that was all the encouragement Piccolo needed; a hand shot out, grabbing Gohan by the scruff of his neck and taking to the air, the boy's startled yelp fading into the distance almost faster than my weary ki-sense could track. Had I done the right thing? Part of me said yes, the other wondered for the poor boy's sanity.

In the end, somebody else decided to start worrying for me.

_'Oh, this is bad this is bad, this so very bad..._

I winced slightly at the sudden crackle of static in my ear. Trunks?!

"How are you still able to talk to me?"

_"You still have the earpiece, don't you?"_

I did?

A hand rose to my ear; sure enough, there was that small device. I'd forgotten all about it in my rage. Well, hooray for mixed blessings. _"You aren't hurt, are you?" _he asked.

"No...

_"THEN WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?!"_

"Owowow! Not so loud!" I winced, doubling over at the sudden explosion of sound. "I'm sorry about Raditz, okay?! I just couldn't let him get away with that!"

_"Ugh."_ I couldn't see his face, but I had the distinct impression the half-saiyan was very, very annoyed with me at that moment. _"Look, until I can fix...whatever it is that went wrong on our end, you're stuck there. The timeline's on track, more or less, with you killing Raditz and Goku dead, but know that Piccolo and the others know you exist..._

...I'm boned, aren't I?"

_"Pretty much. I can't reverse the time stream; not without making things worse. For better or worse, they KNOW you now. You'll just have to roll with it until I can find a way to bring you back. Where are you?"_

"Just North of South city. What? I make jokes when I'm stressed!"

_"Well then, I'll leave it to you...good luck._

I bit back a grimace as the earpiece went dead.

In my current state I'd be lucky to fly, let alone use something complicated like instant transmission...what in the name of me?! To my disbelief the information was simply there in my head, the knowledge ingrained in the back of my skull with the kaioken, as though I'd known it all along. Well, those two skills were the ones I'd given Frost...as was the Special Beam Cannon. Best. Attack. Ever. Now, if I could just find some way to try and learn the Kamehame-

"MY BABY!"

...ha.

Ah, crap baskets. I'd forgotten all about Goku's friends and family. More importantly Chi-Chi. Odd. I didn't recall her appearing in the series at this point...another change garnered by my appearance, perhaps? I filed it away for later review. Interesting. Yamcha, Chiatotzu and Tien were here as well. Ah, and there was Bulma, Roshi, too...

My eyes flicked toward the hovercar-Bulma's?-as it touched down only a few feet away. I felt my legs threaten to unfold beneath me, physical exhaustion finally overtaking me at last. Of course, that had to be the exact moment a certain bald monk saw me, the ruined war zone, blood on the rocks,the obvious lack of his best friend, and came to the wrong conclusion.

"What have you done to Goku?!" he demanded.

"Now everyone just calm down! I'm, not an enemy!"

"Get her!"

"Oh for crying-_KAIOKEN!"_

* * *

_(One swift beating and lengthy explanation later...)_

* * *

"So...you're _not_ with those other saiyans?" Krillin asked, rubbing his now-dented cheek. "Sorry for attacking you...

"I wouldn't call it attacking." My chest puffed out proudly. "Even weakened, that was...well, it was easy."

"Great." Yamcha grumbled. "Because that makes _us_ feel so much better."

"But you're alive, aren't you?" I pointed out.

Tien frowned, exchanging a muted glance with Chiaotzu. "I suppose...

Mumbled assent from the others.

"Ehehehe," Roshi snickered, rubbing his bloody noise...which I very much doubted was from the blow to the ribs I'd dealt him earlier. "I'm glad to be alive! What a _kick!" _Admittedly, as a man, I'd found his hijinks mildly amusing. Not so as a woman. Bastard had tried to grope my ass!

"Silence, pervert."

"Wha, I was just...hehehe...

Okay, his hand should _not_ be there! "Get off!"

My tail flicked him away in annoyance.

"To answer your question?" I turned back towards Krillin and Yamcha, "No. I'm an outcast. I have no alliance with them." Technically true. "Even if I were, they'd probably use me to continue our race. No thank you! Its _my_ body! Speaking of body, and remember this, its very important that you don't wish Kak-Goku, "I corrected myself, frowning at the unexpected slip, "back until a year has passed. He's receiving special training with-

"Enough about that!" Chi-Chi bustled forward, thrusing the former bandit aside. "Where's my Gohan?!"

"Ah." I blinked. "You're still here. Well, Piccolo took him to train-

"You let that monster take my baby?!" The Ox-King's daughter shrilled! "My little Gohan? GOHAN?!" I sputtered as she grabbed hold of my collar and started shaking me with surprising strength for an earthling, eyes wild and livid. "Where have you taken him?! WHERE-

My hand cracked out as lightly as possible, driving her into slumber.

"I'm sorry, did anyone have a problem with that?" I cocked my head aside, considering. "I don't like noisy women."

Everyone shook their heads rapidly.

"Anyway, saiyans here in a year, terribly strong. Train your asses off or you'll laugh. Got that?"

"Say," Bulma started, "We never got your name."

"Serah."

"Well, Serah, do you need that?" she pointed to the still-functioning scouter on my face. "You mentioned you could use it to sense power levels."

"This old thing? Nope. Don't need it. Catch!"

"Wha-hey!" Bulma yelped, fumbling with the device as it landed in her hands. "Careful!"

"Don't worry, that things pretty solid. It can measure anything up to the millions...I think." Speaking of which; it was beeping now. Oh. Lovely. Pleeeaaaaase tell me Mira and Towa weren't about to make an appearance, not here, not now! Even with the Kaioken, I very much doubted I was in any shape to fight them. Thankfully my prayers were answered; whatever prickled at the edge of my senses had sensed vanished moments later, gone before I could track it.

"Well, I think that went well-" then I found myself interrupted by a terribly familiar, nasally voice in my head. Why me?!

_ "Aha! Finally found you! You've got some explaining to do, missy! How do you know the kaioken?!"_

_'Oh, good. I was looking forward to this.'_

_"WHAT?!"_

Sighing, I pressed two fingers to my forehead, focusing._ 'Hope I have enough energy for this..._

"Well," I said, "Its been fun. See you all in one year. Anybody got a senzu bean?"

Krillin looked almost bashful. "Well, I _do_ have one-

"Gimme." I gestured, fingers beckoning. "Oh, and shout SENZU BEAN when you throw it, please."

"Um...SENZU BEAN!"

I caught in my mouth, chewed once, and vanished with a laugh. "Ah, that crap never gets old...

Krillin sweatdropped at her passing. "She's...a little weird, isn't she?"

Everyone nodded.

"Yup."

* * *

Instant transmission is a funny thing.

For one, I'd expected it to be hard.

It wasn't.

Apparently the so-called "System" Frost spoke of had hardwired it to my brain alongside a very specific set of skills. Skills that brought me right to the pudgy kai's doorstep with only a thought. No amount of skill, even at full strength could have prepared me for the gravity, however.

Nothing could.

The moment I landed, I had to flare the Kaioken just to keep from being floored. Even then it was an effort, sapping my strength just to stand. Oomph! Despite the discomfort, my saiyan instincts soared. Now, here was a place I could train! Forget the Hyperbolic Time Chamber-probably wouldn't last a day in there as is-I could become so much stronger here! Even now-for every second spent here-I could feel this saiyan body becoming accustomed to the infernally high gravity...

"Ah, there you are."

I didn't even bother to turn as the kaio in question appeared, emerging from his house, Bubbles and Gregory in tow. I grinned cheekily, waving.

"Long time no see!"

"Hmm." Far from being surprised at my appearance, the diminutive god seemed almost curious. "A saiyan. Why am I not surprised? But I'm pretty sure you're not Goku, and your mind doesn't _feel_ like a saiyan's...

"Well, you're kinda right on both counts."

"Oh?"

I very-much doubted I could trust him with the truth. He was, however, a master telepath, so he'd probably find out anyway...ah, to hell with it. What's the worst that could happen...?

_"Everything!"_ Trunks cried!

Oh, hush.

"Well, I'm from the future." There it was. The cat was out of the bag. "From another dimension entirely, actually. In that universe, I know quite a bit about you."

"Really, now?" A slender eyebrow was arched, followed by a snicker. "Well, that _is_ a funny joke. Can't say I've ever heard it before."

"I can prove it. You," I pointed at the small monkey beside him, are Bubbles. The little bug there is Gregory, whom, I might add, you have your students try to hit with a hammer _after _they catch Bubbles. You," my finger swung back to him, "Are King Kai, otherwise known as North Kai. Your techniques include, but are not limited to, the Kaioken, as well as the Spirit Bomb. You have an intense rivalry with West and South kai, thanks to of course, a nasty little incident that happened during-

"OKAY, OKAY!" King Kai sputtered, waving his hands rapidly. "I believe you! Sheesh, you didn't have to go and mention_ that..._so why are you here?"

"Eh, preserving time and order as we know it, trying to keep the future from collapsing, that sort of thing. Got stuck here, somehow, now I'm just waiting for a ride home." I chuckled nervously. "I don't suppose you have a spare time machine I could borrow?"

"Nope, 'm afraid not. I could help you with the Kaioken, though."

I bristled. "What's wrong with my Kaioken?!"

"My Kaioken." the god corrected. "For starts, you can't take it beyond a double increase, can you?"

Damnit, how did he know?!"

"Yeah, I'd like to at least make it to twenty-

"ARE YOU INSANE?! You trying to blow up a planet or something?!"

"No, just prepare myself for really strong enemies."

"Alright, then if you know the drill, lets hear it! Hit me with your best joke."

Thankfully, I knew his one weakness. Thank GOD I'd watched so much Dragonball Z...

"You can tune a piano, but you can't tun-a fish."

Hit the nail right on the head.

"Bahahahaha! How did you know?!"

Grinning, I genuflected as best I could while wearing the armor.

"I bow before your wisdom, oh great kaio of jokes!"

"Alright then, show me what you've got." when I simply stared, he elaborated. "I want you to raise your power as high as you can-without the kaioken. That way, I can get a good feel for your limit."

"Are you sure?" I frowned. "You might be surprised...

"Yes, yes, I'm sure its a very high power where you're from, nothing I haven't seen before."

Still frowning I focused, reached deep inside myself. There. A light in the darkness, a glimmering, golden spark awaiting me. I grabbed hold of it and yanked; it was like trying to pull a mountain with nothing more than your bare hands, while being attacked by a pack of tigers. It yielded slowly, kicking and screaming, my eyes unknowingly changing, flaring green. All that anger, all that pain, that urge to fight, maim, kill, I gave it that outlet it desired, and it came swelling up with a snarl.

"Yes, that a fine energy, keep it up. Now, boost it with the Kaioken and-WHAT IN THE NAME OF ME?!"

**"HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"**

A maelstrom of force slammed into the pudgy kaio, nearly launching him off the ground. "Whoa, whoa, whoa! Ease up! You're shaking the whole planet apart!" She wasn't listening! Instead she doubled down, clenched her fists, and kept shouting!

**-AAAAAAAAAA-**

Gale force winds blasted him backwards into his home as scarlet sparks crept into her aura, her hair swaying violently in the breeze. Bubbles and Gregory fared little better; both monkey and insect slammed into him a heartbeat later. Walls splintered around him and still the kai clung on for dear life, snatching at a weather vane before the energy blew him clear through the house.

This power...what was she?!

**-AAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"**

The next thing King Kai knew, he was flying back, his head now adorned by something better described as a dent than a face. The next thing he knew, he was knocked upwards. A blinking gold light was growing larger at the end of his vision as the ki continued to assault him. The next, he was knocked back down. And the next thing the self-styled king of jokes knew, for quite some time after that, was pain.

By the time I came back to myself, I realized I'd not only managed to wreck the lawn, but I'd all but flattened the very being from whom I wished to learn.

"Oops. Guess I haven't mastered the art of holding back...

"You're crazy!" the kai bounded up from the wreckage of his home, one anttenae bent. "I almost died!"

I let go of the beast inside me, reality slowly trickling back in as I realized the devastation I'd wrought.

"So...is that a no on the teaching?"

The blue deity turned a pale shade of green. "Aw, damnit, I can't just turn you away after you passed the first test! Alright, I'll show you how to properly use the Kaioken, but the Spirit Bomb...that's out of the question, definitely! You've got enough crazy power already!"

I nearly danced, such was my glee!

And if I was going to train, who better to train with than the great Goku himself?

"Oh no no no no! No you don't! I'll teach you now, but after that, get! The last thing I need is _two _of you tearing up my planet!

Darn. The thought of training with the best was tempting but no...

...too risky.

* * *

In hindsight, the year went by almost ridiculously fast.

I also found myself becoming uncomfortably familiar with my new body. And on that note, periods are evil. EVIL I SAY!

My training alternated between visits with King Kai, making certain Piccolo didn't scar Gohan for life, checking in on Krillin and the others, and my own private sessions with myself. Its a crying shame I didn't know the multi-form technique. It wasn't long before I found myself able to sustain a x5 Kaioken with only moderate effort. I prayed it would be enough. Against a normal Vegeta and Nappa, certainly, but if their ki was boosted by Towa and Mira...well, that was going to be problematic.

Days flowed into weeks, and weeks into months, until finally, a year arrived.

Looking back, I really should've used Instant Transmission to bring Goku from the get go. Then again, it was him or that city. And you can guess which one I chose...

...that decision-or lack thereof-would come back to haunt me.

* * *

I sensed the pods crashing down toward East City almost before I truly saw them.

My mind knew at once where they would impact; after all, I was standing on the very building into which they would crash. impact.

Honestly, if I hadn't watched the serious almost religiously, I wouldn't have known where to look in the beginning at all. It always struck me as odd that they would land here, in a population center no less. Looking back I simply couldn't bring myself to let so many die, not if I could avoid it.

So there I were, perched upon a skyscraper, waiting for that moment, that precise instant as those pods streaked towards me-

_**NOW!**_

My eyes snapped open wide, black eyes flecked with green as I drew hard on my reserve of energy. With all my might I flung a hand forward, the kiai lunging outward from my outstretched palm to meet the on-rushing spheres even as they hurtled forward. I could've sworn I heard both Nappa _and _Vegeta roar in surprise as the invisible energy flung them away and out of the city; from there it was child's play to pursue, ensuring that the two madmen landed well outside of civilization.

_WHUMP!_

With a dull thud, gravity finally had its say, and the pods met earth. I flared my ki immediately, hoping Piccolo and the others would get the message. If not...well, this would be an awfully short fight. Snagging them in a quick burst of instant transmission wasn't an option; I'd just burn more of my much-needed energy doing that.

Still, what happened next made me feel just a little bit better about my chances.

I couldn't help it; I was laughing myself silly by the time they finally stumbled out of their pods, swaying like a pair of drunken sailors. I landed on a nearby rock formation and watched the fireworks unfold. Oh, they had to figure out I was nearby sooner or later, but now? Now, I was content to let the sun set and my mischief unfold. Huh. Another oddity. They'd arrived towards the evening, instead of the afternoon. A full six hours off of what it might have once been...curiouser and curiouser, that.

"Godamnit, Nappa!" Vegeta groaned, bracing himself on the side of his ruined pod. "What _was_ that?!"

"Don't look at me!" the large man rumbled. "I got sideswiped too!"

"It must've been that girl." the prince murmured, calming himself. "The one that killed Raditz."

To my amusement, the bald brute actually got a bit snarky, there.

"No, you think?"

Another moment of my time was spent watching them foolishly stagger about; when I finally saw them reaching for their scouters to detect the nearest power level, I decided the jig was up. Ceding myself to the sinister saiyaness lurking inside of me and flared my energy high as I dared without the Kaioken. I'd need that to surprise them. Speaking of surprises...

"Hey, boys~!"

_"There!"_

Their scouters beeped in the same instant that I cupped my hands and slid one foot forward from my rocky outcropping. Even from here, I could see the little bugger's sneer. I must've looked quite the sight to them, all dolled up in my saiyan getup, thankfully Bulma had repaired it for me, my once long hair now cut almost boyishly short, a dark halo hanging just above my shoulders. Despite the mountain of fear I felt crushing beneath that gaze I forced myself to smile.

"Nice night to die, inn'it?" I drifted off the rock face with a gentle application of ki, my body silhouetted by the setting sun as it alighted only a few yards away.

"So." I willed myself to be still at that sneering, superior voice. "We meet at last. I'm surprised. I didn't think there were any saiyans left besides us."

"Sorry to disappoint you." My tail flicked in annoyance. "Look, I'm only going to say this once for posterity so listen up; leave this planet and you won't be harmed!"

"So you say." Nappa grunted.

Vegeta was entirely in agreement.

"Sorry, but we have other plans."

"Plans involving the dragonballs, immortality, yeah, I'm sure. You want any of that, you'll have to get past me." I flicked my ki sense outward, mildly annoyed that the others hadn't shown up yet. "I have a claim on this planet, and I won't let you have your way with it!"

Vegeta snorted, tapping a button on his scouter.

"Oh? She's got a fighting power of five thousand."

"W-Wha?!" Nappa turned pale. "But that's even higher than mine...

My grin grew._ 'Pretty sure I have more than that..._

"I wouldn't trust that, she's probably hiding her true power."

"You are correct, sir!"

"Nappa, plant the Saibamen." he said. "I'm curious as to just how powerful she _really_ is. There should still be six left, right?"

"Lemme check. Hey, actually there's more-

"Yeah, gonna have to stop you there," I cut in, raising a finger as that annoying little vial came into view. "Sorry. Don't feel like fighting your little green men."

A beam shot out, obliterating the small container and seeds both before Nappa had a chance to plant them. I had no idea how empowered the Saibamen would've been under Towa's influence, but I wasn't willing to risk the chance that, together, they might be able to give me some problems. Naturally, neither knew that. They simply assumed I'd gotten in a preemptive strike.

"Ah, ah, ah!" My still-smoking finger wagged, glad I'd nipped that potential problem in the bud. "No Saibamen for you! I've got enough on my plates as is. Speaking of which." In a rapid motion I drew my hands back a second time, rapidly pouring energy into my open palms.

"Ka...me...ha...me...!"

"No you don't!"

I vanished in the same instant that his hand swung forwards at me, a violet steak shooting past and taking a few strands of hair. God, I loved instant transmission. Now, to pull a page from Goku's book. Another series of poorly timed blasts missed me as I flickered again...

...directly in front of the prince. My hands cupped a sea of power, I flung them forward.

"Yes, I do."

"NO-

_**-HA!"**_

Vegeta must've got his wits about him somehow-even then, he was just a hair too slow to get the hell out of my way. My newly learned Kamehameha wave slammed headlong into the pompous prince, a blue supernova springing up around him and grinding his body into the dirt. Or, so I'd hoped. A brief explosion of azure light, a searing flashing against my eyes. I didn't wait. In the instant that the Prince went down, I pounced on the unsuspecting Nappa, smashing him down into the ground.

"Wolf Fang-oh, hell, that does sound corny." I paused, watching as the brute struggled upright. "Let's go with something else_...Hydra kick!"_

Nappa spat blood as a heel smashed into his face, followed by another sharp blow, this to the ribs. He fell back, bringing his guard up and focusing desperately on defence. To no avail, the little terror simply kept at him, making magnificent use of her smaller size to get in close and hammer at his larger, bulkier body. By the time he finally raised his guard enough to block his body was crying out in pain-and excitement. What a fight! He was barely able to see her movements but they _were _there, and finally he caught something.

A slip, an error maybe, a mistake.

Whatever it was, it gave him the chance he needed to finally deadlock with the girl, grabbing her by the wrists and holding her fast.

"You're pretty good...

I grit my teeth, straining as I caught a flicker of ebon power in his aura. Fine then.

"Then you'll love this. Times two!"

"Times wha-

"GUAH!"

Nappa choked in surprise and wrath, the breath bursting out of his lungs as a small fist-my fist!-smashed through his armor and embedded itself firmly in his torso, snapping his spine like a twig. One blow too powerful; and this one sent him tumbling backwards like a house of cards, gasping and sputtering for breath. He tried to move but no, nothing happened. I grimaced. Had I really hit him that hard?

"M...My legs! What did you do to me?!"

"Took you out of this fight, is what I did." I muttered. "Be grateful. You'll live. Unlike your friend."

_"I'm sorry, what was that?"_

I froze as the sharp, jagged sound of a fast moving body shot past me.

There he was.

Dark ribbons of power circled around him, his eyes flashing an eerie, blood-red color. His armor was cracked and melted in places, but I knew at a glance that he hadn't lost a drop of energy. If anything he was probably even stronger and-ohhellthereitwas! My arms shot up as a wave of foul ki-not his ki!-stemmed from the prince of all saiyans, nearly flooring me. _Oh, you've got to be kidding me! How strong did Towa make him?! _Ohhh, man. A bead of sweat trickled down my forehead.

I'd kicked the hornet's nest now! "Oh, this is going to suck..

"Sis!"

Then things truly went pear-shaped.

I don't know what kept Gohan and the others so long; whether they'd waited for one another, or simply hung back as I fought Nappa and Vegeta. Whatever the case, they'd finally shown up now...exactly when they had to stay the hell away, when they were no match for this...this...thing!"

"Oh?" Vegeta cackled, seeing my stricken expression. "Are those your friends? Weaklings like them have no place on the field of battle."

"NO!" I lunged but he was already gone, vanishing before my eyes.

"RUN!" I roared up at them! "STAY AWAY-

Too late.

Krillin died first.

I barely had time to finish my sentence before Vegeta appeared before him. His hands pistoned out, grabbed the monk by the neck and twisted. A devastating crack followed, signalling the unfortunate end of Tien. Poor Chiaotzu didn't even have time to scream; a heartbeat later he met his end, his head violently imploding as the prince blasted it clear off his shoulders. Piccolo flung himself in front of Gohan a split second before he too would have perished, his body shielding him even as I surged upwards to keep the prince from doing to the same to him.

"R...Run...Gohan!"

One hit.

That was all it took.

That, was all it took to knock the strength right out of me, sending me sprawling back to the ground.

No! This wasn't supposed to happen! I was stronger than this! I...

Out of all of them only Yamcha escaped, snatching Gohan and darting towards the ground

"D-Damnit! What is he?!"

Just like that, four of earth's greatest fighters had dropped dead while I stood by, doing nothing. No...

I bared my teeth in an angry, heart-stopping hiss.

"You...You monster. You just...killed them!"

Vegeta regarded me with contempt at first...then curiosity. Honestly, I preferred the contempt. "I knew it. You _are _the one who annihilated Raditz, aren't you?" he said, sneering, "And then Nappa. Like it was...nothing. Wel, almost nothing. Hmm. Let's see here how strong you are now that I've made you good and angry." To my horror, that grin grew, becoming a sly sneer.

"Sixteen thousand and twenty?" I barely heard him. Something was twisting inside of me now, something was coming loose...

"I must admit, I AM impressed." Vegeta's musing tried and failed to daew me back to reality. "You're only slightly weaker than me. As expected of an elite. Perhaps you'll be able to entertain me until Kakarott arrives." My heart and mind reached the same conclusion in the same instant. Even poor, paralyzed Nappa seemed to realize it. Nappa, the cruel brute, who I just hadn't been able to bring myself to kill. His remark about being "proud" of my technique had lodged itself firmly inside his heart.

Who knew? Maybe he could change...where was I? Oh right. Back to my imminent anger.

Oh shit. Shit shit shit!

"G-Get away!"

Heedless of their fear, the prince advanced.

"Now then, with the Namek out of the way, why don't we get rid of the rest of the small fry so I can see what she's really made of-HA!"

My hand shot up, effortlessly interposing itself between Gohan and the blast. Pain engulfed my palm as a I made a fist and extinguished it-I vailiantly fought not to let it show. I knew that above all else, Vegeta despised weakness. Showing that weakness only guaranteed a quick death. His scouter, damaged, but not broken, beeped a warning.

"Hmm? Her power's...going up?"

"You...

"Impressive. I'll tell you what, I'm feeling merciful today." A glove hand flicked outward, indicating the prone bodies I was protecting. "Be my mate, and I MIGHT spare your friends."

Kill him.

'What?'

Kill_...him._

In hindsight, it was rather ironic. I'd always liked Vegeta; not just as character but as an ideal; a person, if you will. Think about it, he'd gone from being one of the most vile villains in all of dragonball to one of the best anti-heroes in existence. But right now? Rage. Blind, maddening rage, swirling up from the depths of my being. No. No. No. Not this again. Never again! NEVER! The beast inside of my shrieked, clawing at the door. Was this how Goku felt when he'd seen the bodies of his friends and family?

I snarled.

"I...won't let you...get away...with this!"

"Oh, I think you will."

Kill.

"I WILL NOT!"

Kill.

The prince raised a hand.

Killkillkillkillkillkilllkill...

"Tempting as that is, I have a better idea." A sphere of glowing saffron formed in his hand. "Do you know what this?" Part of me did. The rest didn't care. The cage was breaking, the door opening. I felt something slip in my head, in my heart, my entire body, every cell, every fiber of my being, united in the sole, furious, righteous anger of what I'd just seen. My eyes flashed, staining themselves an eerie teal. My hair flickered. Flashed a flare that would've put a solar to shame.

Behind me, Gohan and Yamcha looked on, transfixed.

_...killkillkillkillkillkill..._

I saw the power ball almost too late. Almost.

_**...KILL! HIM!**_

"Lets see if you can control yourself-gah?!" His words cut off in a strangled gurgle as my hand locked around his wrist, stopping him cold. In his hand, the blutz sphere guttered out. Golden light filled his vision.

"KILL YOU!"

There was no righteous storm, no thunderclap, no immense surge of vile power to herald the change that followed. I was only dimly aware of it at all; my hair, standing rigid and angry, a faint sheen, the whishing sound of my golden aura, shining like plasma. I glared down at the man who had hurt my friends and felt only one thing. Anger. There was no great, emotional speech, no rousing battle cry. There was only the anger. Justified fury, coursing through my veins in a head, saiyan rush.

"What...what form is this?!"

My hand shot out, almost contemptuously, backhanding him into the distance.

**"I WILL NEVER FORGIVE YOU!" **Vegeta realized it in that instant.

He was looking at a Super Saiyan.

**A/N: Aaaaaaaaaaand there we go! I've already screwed up time, without even trying! Oi...**

**Remember, this is my veeery first try at a self-insert story*blushes furiously*and I pray to god that I didn't do to badly. I'm a master writer when it comes to Naruto, Bleach, and other works of fiction, but they be just that. FICTION. This is me inserted into this story, bits of my life plumbed out before you, and, well, to be honest, its a tad embarassing. Especially the bit with me getting genderswapped. That was hard as hell to do, considering I am, most certainly, a DUDE and straight as a ruler.**

**But, eh, in this story, I thought I'd shake things up a bit...**

** Naturally, I plan to go more in depth with certain characters than most...including new events and all sorts of chaos as I plunge into the Dragonball Xenoverse! It'll make ya laugh too, I promise! God, I really am going to ruin time as we know it int this one...**

**So, in the Immortal Words of Atlas...**

**...Review, Would You Kindly?**

**...hope ya'll like it! And of course, enjoy the preview! 'Tis a little sad...but it also contains a surprise!**

**(Preview)**

_"Why?"_

_"Hmm?" I craned my neck, flinching slightly at the spasm of pain there. "Why what?" Ignoring the threatening shadow towering over me -I had nothing to fear from him- I turned my gaze out on the ocean once more, watching contentedly as the space ship ascended. Ha. The irony of my own thoughts struck me as sorely lacking. I had beaten Vegeta senseless. But my body, not ready for the power I'd summoned, hadn't taken the ki very well._

_And then there were the injuries I'd sustained after fighting off Towa AND Mira...hehehe, kicked their asses too...but at a cost._

_ I wouldn't be moving anytime soon, without a Senzu bean, and they wouldn't be growing for some time. I, a Super Saiyan, was as helpless as in infant and we both knew it. How could I bring that power out again? I didn't know how. I couldn't find the trigger. And without it, without that, I was as weak as any other cripple._

_Even so, the looming saiyan did nothing to attack. His own pride prevented it. Didn't keep him from speaking, though._

_Nappa growled._

_"Why did you spare me?!" he demanded to know. "More importantly, why did you give me that bean?! You're worse off than I was, now! I killed your friends! And...And...you still saved me! Why?!"_

_I laughed quietly. Bitterly, as I stared down at my motionless legs in the wheelchair. "Simple..._

_...you remind me of, well...me, I guess."_

_A moment of silence passed between us. "You spare me...because I remind you, of you?" he grunted, confused. "I don't get you, boss."_

_I laughed; it sounded annoyingly like a giggle to my own ears. "Don't worry about it Nappy; I don't get **myself**, half the time. Now, hurry up and carry me over to the tower. I've got an idea."_

_"Eh? I'm no horse-_

_"MUSH!"_

**R&amp;R! =D**


	4. Wrath of an Angry God

**A/N: Howdy, ya'll! I've been playing Dragonball Xenoverse as of late, and this idea sort of just came to me in a dream, as it were. I've been suffering through a bad breakup, and I must've eaten something weird, or played WAY too much of this game, because I had a weird dream.**

**Naturally it gave me an idea, and so I made a few tweaks to it. I'm honestly bracing myself for the backlash of even trying this, but in all honesty, I simply couldn't bear to let the idea die.**

**I thought of doing a Naruto crossover with this-let me know if I should!-but then I realized the aspect that truly makes the game great is that its you playing it; after all, you, the player are essentially the one Trunks wished for, in essence. Sure, it might be nice to write what everyone else was writing, but then I realized something; something I haven't done before. So...**

**Again, be sure to play the game yourself or at least familiarize yourself with it...**

**...else you'll be hopelessly lost. I'll leave it to ya'll to guess which aspects of my life written here are fiction and which aren't! Sorry if its short! Expect much more to come! As this is my first self-insert story, PLEASE BE NICE! I worked really, really, REALLY hard on this! And there's also a cute little scene here, too...as well as a major shift in history...**

**...We're veering off course here, folks! Hope you've brought your tissues and popcorn, because it gets really emotional...and bloody as hell. Some TFS jokes in here too...**

**...I should also let you all know that I am currently jobless-FREE FROM WALMART! BANZAI! BANZAAAAAAAIIIIIII!-so now I have PLENTY of time to make these chapters-for all my stories, nice and long juicy! Hope ya'll enjoy. I admit, I've been looking forward to writing this chapter for a LONG time. Behold the battle, folks! And yes, I credit Captain Space for a paragraph here and ****npberyhill as well****! Yup, Vegeta, is about to get the ass-kicking of a lifetime and then some...**

_"Is that all? You disappoint me, little prince."_

_~the Super Saiyan._

**Wrath of an Angry God**

The Supreme Kai of Time considered herself a practical girl.

She was the essence of peace and serenity, calm and relaxation. Never allowing herself to be flustered, her feathers to ruffled. Oh, she might get angry sometimes when Toki-Toki roosted on her head, or pecked at her with his beak, but ordinarily, she kept her cool.

Today was not one of those days.

"This is crazy! She's out of control!" the small kaio scurried from scroll to scroll in the time vault, struggling to put out fire, weave the threads of history back together even as they came undone. Here, she saw Frieza in a deadlock against Captain Ginyu of all people, a mysterious warrior fighting by the alien's side; there, she saw a young Gohan impaled upon the rigid point of Cell's arm, life leaching out of his eyes. And _there, _she saw that infernal girl shaking hands with Majin Buu! _Super Buu!_ Shaking! Hands! With! Him! MADNESS!

Granted, the images were constantly in flux, and ever changing, but still!

It was all coming apart!

"Trunks, do something!" she cried, hurrying to another dissolving scroll. "Calm her down! Confess to her, or whatever! I don't care! Whatever it takes! Just do it before its too late!"

"I can't!" came the reply from across the vault, "She's crushed the earpiece, too! We have no way of contacting her!"

"Then get her back here before its too late!" a scroll was lobbed in his direction. "If she kills him, you won't exist!"

"But-

A chill plucked at the saiyan's heart. Right. If Vegeta died, then he'd never meet Bulma. And if he never met Bulma, then...wait. He hesitated, fingers bunching around the scroll as the carnage played out before his very eyes. The timeline was already polluted, to be certain, but he could still see enough to realize Goku hadn't arrived yet. And with only Gohan and Yamcha remaining-oh, no.

"But if we doesn't fight him-

The kai skidded to a halt, the rammifications of that decision ringing in her mind. If no one was left to fight Vegeta...

"Oh, darn it all!"

Trunks hissed, wincing as the scroll flared in his hands. Instead of glowing a dark, tainted violet, it now burned a molten gold, searing his very fingertips. What did this mean?! It was impossible to look at; a blazing and angry white void stared back at him, an unknown eternity. He saw her face, her wild, laughing face, devoid of all logic and reason. Head thrown back. Laughing. He...couldn't bring her back. Too much energy. Time had no hold on her in this form. Nothing did.

At this rate...

_...she's going to destroy everything!_

* * *

_(Meanwhile, back in the past...)_

"MASENKO-HA!"

A blast of molten gold smashed into Vegeta from out of nowhere and flung him away, his body arcing across the battlefield as though he'd been smacked by the hand of an angry god. Perhaps he had. Crashing through a rocky tower, then another, and another still, until momentum finally deserted him, launching-burying him-in the stones.

Trapped beneath layers of hardened rock, he found he had time to reflect on his mistakes. And time to seethe.

_'This...this is ridiculous! What happened?! How did she transform?!'_

This woman was like a Goddess compared to him; much the way one would compare Frieza to Nappa. She was wholly out of his league and he, out of his depth. Because this, this, was a Super Saiyan. He'd never seen one before, never laid eyes on the pinnacle of his people's prowess, yet somehow, someway, he knew. Those burning eyes. That golden hair. The incredible aura, the sheer presence of her that felt like it could flatten a planet in an instant...he could feel it, even with his fledgling energy sense.

Part of him knew this, yet he refused to accept it.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are, little prince!" as though from a great distance, he heard it; the growl of the goddess's voice. "Or I'll blast you out!"

No, he would not accept this. He was the prince of all saiyans! By divine right, it should be his! HIS! He could not accept this!

He could not!

_**"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"**_

* * *

"Come out, come out, wherever you are, little prince!" I called, grinning down at the rocky tomb in which my foe lay buried. "Or I'll blast you out!"

Silence greeted me, broken only by the ragged breaths I took, my chest heaving. I wasn't exhausted-far from it-I'd never felt so alive! All this strength, all this power, all this energy! I felt like I could take on the world; hell, I could! I could conquer this planet! Nothing could stop me! Wait. I blinked, frowning. I shouldn't be thinking like this. Why...why was I thinking like this? My thoughts felt muddled, distant. Dizzy. I knew I wouldn't kill Vegeta but now I _wanted _to; the beast was pounding at the door...

Kill.

I grit my teeth and hissed at the agony in my skull. Resisting, fighting this...thing clawing at the door of my mind. No. If I killed Vegeta the timeline would...would...no...

_Kill._

Stop...

**Kill.**

This...isn't...I don't want to...

_**KILL!**_

...ME!

I was slipping and I knew it; not only was I still unused to this body, but this was me as a Super Saiyan. Everything was amplified. Every desire, every nuance, every facet of this new, cursed body. A human will couldn't possibly contend with a saiyan's; certainly not a pure-blooded desire to fight. I fought it, but each instant was like tiny knifes in my skull and I was slipping...slipping...I just can't...hold on...damnit...da-

_"Enough!"_

I frowned at the scream that issued forth from the rubble; sneering at the explosive wave as it scattered the rocks to the winds. Vegeta stood unbroken amidst the rubble, a vein throbbing in his temple. I knew at once what was coming, and despite my best efforts, I felt my mind slip further and further down the maddening track until it was too late. In this moment, I wasn't Ryan, or Serah. I was the beast. And the beast was hungry; the only way to satisfy it was death. It wanted to kill!

I WANTED TO KILL!

"How?!" My eyes tracked him, watching him ascend to meet me. "How are you this strong?! Even if you are an elite...No!" His head jerked from side to side, a haunted look in his eyes. "This is impossible! You...you are a _woman!_ It can't be you! IT CAN'T! HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?!"

I grunted.

"Situps...and plenty of juice."

"JUICE?!" To my dark amusement, his face purpled to match his aura. "To hell with your juice! I-

**WHAP.**

My hand shot out with almost primitive, contemptuously swatting him away when he tried to close with me. "Boring. Weak."

Ah. Perhaps I shouldn't have said that.

"Weak...?!"

"I don't care if you are a super saiyan!" He shrieked! "You love this planet so much?! WELL, YOU CAN _**DIE**_ WITH IT!" Like a rising bolt he ascended, my eyes tracking with the sudden movements. It wasn't long before I recognized the streak building in his cupped hands. Hmm. He built that up rather quickly. My heart raced at the thought of a challenge.

"GALICK GUN!"

I was dissapointed.

Laughter bubbled out of me all over again as the blast thundered towards me, casting me in ethereal glow, my shadow becoming something monstrous and ugly behind me. That...? He thought he could hurt me with that?! I strode forwards, a smile alighting at the edges of my lips. It would've been so easy to overpower his beam with another of my own, but in a heartbeat, I decided he didn't deserve the honor. My mind focused, channeling power, ki flowing into my left leg as hell descended upon me.

I waited, listening to him laugh, preparing myself for that very last second. Cracks etched themselves into the ground at my feet. Somewhere behind me, I heard Gohan's voice:

"Sis!"

Then, I moved.

"ORAH!"

My heel shot up and-much as an icy tyrant had once done-I kicked that sonuvabitch right back at him. The difference? Vegeta didn't get out of the way this time. His furious snarl turned to a roar of rage as my counter took his attack and exceeded lightspeed, his own beam shooting him up into the atmosphere. I watched for a moment, considering. Should I finish him off? No...he deserved to suffer more. Then, after all his hope was gone_-I'll break him then._ Slowly, ever so slowly...

"Th-That was amazing."

KILL!

My body spun around as Gohan and Yamcha landed behind me. No wait, there was one more ahead of their lot...Goku?! A grin twitched at my lips at what I sensed there. His ki was even higher than my base state! For some reason, he'd gotten stronger, much, much, MUCH stronger than should've been at this time. And my saiyan instincts sang at the prospect.

"Kakarot..." the word was a growl. Now I knew the saiyan within was fully in control. I _despised _that name. Calling him by his saiyan heritage just felt...wrong, somehow.c

"Hey its you!" his cheery grin lasted all of an instant; he must've been remembering the deaths of his friends. "Thanks for keeping Gohan safe...

...you...remember...?"

"Yeah, I remember you from before," he said, somber. Eventually, his curiosity got the better of him. "So...why's your hair all shiny?"

"Vegeta was calling her a super saiyan." Gohan offered timidly, risking a glance at me.

**Kill...**

_No, you stupid beast! I won't let you!_

"A super saiyan?" Goky blinked. "Man, that's a lot of power...

Yamcha grinned, heedless of the inner battle taking place within my mind.

"You should have seen her! She transformed and took Vegeta and that other guy apart like it was nothing!" Alas, his little burst of enthusiasm, didn't last. "Its just...a shame about the others. He butchered them, Goku! Like they were nothing! I wasn't able to do anything!"

"Oh, you mean the big guy? I passed him on my way here. He's out of it, but he'll live...

"Nah," the former bandit shook his head. "She got him in one. I'm talking about the little one."

"Hmm. Well, I can still sense _his_ ki...he's probably mad as a hornet...

"What?!"

"Hehehe, looks like you really didn't need me after all-

Just like that, the beast got the upper hand.

"...heh."

My hand rose in an abrupt motion, the sudden kiai blasting foward and knocking Earth's greatest hero off his feet. Ordinarily a trick like that wouldn't have done him in, but the sheer force behind it catapulted him as if he weighed no more than a child, spearing him into the ground. Weak. The beast growled and receded, disapoointed. Yamcha and Gohan's reactions were more profound.

"What the hell?!"

"Daddy?!"

"Wha...no!" I looked down at my hand in disbelief, momentarily shocked out of my battle stupor. What had I done? Stop! Somehow, I willed myself to wheel away. Calm down. He should have a bean with him thanks to Korin. He...He should...but the betrayal of what I'd done struck deeper than that. I'd turned on them like some sort of wild animal, unable to recognize friend from foe. No. As I thought, I wasn't ready for this form yet-I was a danger to everyone. Just like...just like Broly...

Kill.

"Why you...!"

Kill.

My hand shot out, flattening the former bandit to the ground. Then I turned on Gohan.

"W-Why did you do that, sis?"

Kill.

I gazed down at the boy, struggling to master myself. He was just a kid. No. Don't you do it, don't you _dare..._

Kill.

I ground my teeth.

_**KILL!**_

...no. the last bastion of my self control refused it. No. Nononononono! NO! Something deep inside of me, something I didn't understand, refused to yield. Just as I'd done only a year before, I reached down and mussed his hair, smiling softly. He dared a tentative smile of his own, and, drowning in that sea of maddening battle lust, I caught a breath. Almost before I knew what was truly happening I drew that small body into mine, arm wrapped tight around him. No. I couldn't kill him. I refused to kill him...!

"Good...Gohan..._sorry_...Gohan..." I growled through clenched teeth, vibrating with the effort to remain in control, "Can't...control...have to...get...away...sorry, so sorry...! Dad has...beans...give...it to him!"

Before I could lose myself once and for all, I jetted upwards into the clouds.

Damn. Damn damndamndamndamnDAMNITALL! I knew this was a bad idea! My brief respite was already fading, I could feel myself hungering for the fight once again. I could barely think straight...already...slipping...

With one, final sigh, I let go.

Ascending through the clouds I finally found Vegeta there, hanging, searching desperately for something. The moon? Probably. The moment he saw me he went on the defensive all over again.

"Still alive?" Crap. I couldn't even form coherent sentences now...!

"DAMN YOU! M-Monster!"

"Monster?" I cocked my head aside with a grin, considering, "No...I am a Devil! Heh." A snicker, head tilting back. "Hehehe. HAHAHA!" With this eerie, full-throated, body shaking laughter came still more ki, boundless energy filling my body to the brim. Where was it coming from? I didn't care. I only knew that I loved it...and I never wanted it to stop.

"I will not lose here!" Vegeta roared!

"Yes, you will!"

We collided in a storm of fists and feet and ki; nothing held back. Even then, it wasn't enough. At full power, and enhanced by Towa's magic, Vegeta's blows would've ripped Goku to shreds. They barely tickled me. The deadly assault raining down around my personage felt like a feather's brush. It made me laugh. I was always ticklish, but this laughter wasn't born of that; it was the beast. It was _me_, the saiyan, laughing at this foolish little man, condemning him for trying to harm me.

"What's wrong, Vegeta?!" more blows rebounded off me, serving only to bruise his knuckles. "I thought you were stronger than this!"

"SHUT UP!"

Hehehehehe...it was like being stung by tiny gnats. Nothing. I felt nothing except the need to fight, to smash something, break bones, grind my opponent into dust. Destroy. Destroy. DESTROY! My blood thrilled and my body sang, filled with a fury I'd never known. Had I been in my right mind, I would've realized I was acting disturbingly like Broly. Looking back, it shames me to think of that...but it shamed Vegeta even more to be all but thrown around like a bloody rag doll.

"Hmmph." I grunted, aiming for his weakness. "Weak."

"I WILL NOT STAND FOR THIS!"

* * *

Gohan blinked as a savage thunderclap greeted his ears from on high.

"Where did they-

"DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMN IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT~!" Came Vegeta's strangled cry as the two saiyans materialized in the air, several dozen meters away, knifing through the clouds and hurtling toward the ground. The struck the earth violently, the proud prince wedged firmly underneath a sneering Serah, just carrying on burrowing down out of sight.

Goku whistled as he finished off the bean-half Gohan had given him, wincing when he picked himself back up. "Amazing...I can follow them now, but that's some intense p-

A few seconds later, a low rumbling became audible as they rose up out of the crater, sheathed in violet and gold.

This deadlock was eventually broken when one of them finally grew tired of blocking and landed a kick, winding the other. A two-handed haymaker knocked them down to earth once more. Serah hung there, smirking, as her prey lay on the floor, groaning.

"Rrrrrgh...don't think...this is the end!"

"Whatever you say...little prince." her laughter was chilling. "I'll enjoy...crushing your bones!" Before his very eyes her aura exploded into life again, that deafening sense of _presence _nearly overwhelming him. Was this really the one?! The Legendary Super Saiyan?! N-No! He would not falter here! He refused to falter here!

"D-Damn it! I'm not afraid of you!"

* * *

Miles away, from her perch upon her staff, Towa purred softly to herself.

"So...this is a super saiyan."

She'd heard the legends of course -who hadn't?!- but seeing one up close, even a weak one such as this, was certainly something. So much energy! Not enough yet, for their purposes, but still...! Even at a distance her presence was intoxicating; an aura of palpable blood lust, one that promised no respite for any who stood in her way. Most would've quailed under such an aura. For a demon, the fear and anger were...delicious. Such a bloodthirsty beast, this creature.

There was something off about her, though.

She seemed to be holding back, and her soul, well, one didn't extrasensory perception to realize that something was wrong. There was a soul there certainly, but also, a piece of...something else. Whatever it was, she'd no need for assistance, that much was clear. Even with her generous power up, Vegeta was getting thrashed. And he thought this was the Legendary Super Saiyan. How cute. Still the idea that a being could actually be able to wield ki from two different sources without outside aid was...fascinating. She wanted it. She wanted this energy!

Yes, and she also wanted...

"I'll test you, girl." she hummed softly to herself, making a decision. "Mira, be a dear and go help Vegeta, would you? Get Goku first. I want to check something."

Her creation frowned as his mistress pushed herself off her staff, licking her lips. He knew that look. That distant, glazed emotion in her eyes, the lust shining through. He'd seen it countless times, directed at him. That such feelings were now directed at a mortal, even a saiyan such as this...well, surely he was imagining things. Still.

That look was nothing good...

* * *

The Prince of all Saiyans was getting his ass handed to him.

Vegeta knew it, Kakarott knew it, those earthlings knew it, and worst of all the _Super Saiyan knew it._

He'd been getting batted left and right for the last five minutes now without reprieve; he secretly suspected he only lived because she'd been toying with him up until now. But at long last she'd gotten bored-and if that massive build sup of ki was any indication, she was getting ready to squash him flat. He'd gotten in one good shot in, tearing her sleeve and cracking her armor, exposing that arm and part of her chest to the dimming light of the stars...hmm, she really was beau...geh, where had that come from?!

No choice, then.

_'Damn her! I can't take anymore chances like this...this form disguts me, but I'll become the great ape and crush them all!'_

With a supreme effort, the dogged saiyan dragged himself out of the crater one last time, refusing to lay in the hole in which she'd buried him. The Super Saiyan hovered over him, a burning beacon of gold in the night, an insurmountable barrier not even he could surpass. Her crazed smile did precious little to settle his nerves, but he gathered himself up and stood, refusing to cower.

"WOMAN!" he thundered! "You haven't beaten me yet! Do you hear me?!" Clenching his fingers, he summoned up a familiar-looking ball of ki. "Do you remember this?! Do you want a real challenge?! Then allow me to transform!" her eyes locked in on him, and in that instant, he knew he had her. Pride would allow for nothing less. Would she look? Now, that...that was a gamble. If she became ten times stronger in addition to what boost she already had before he destroyed the moon...

"Go ahead." she grinned, folding both arms before her bosom, nearly primal in her arrogance. "Can't touch me. Strongest."

"We'll see! HA!" With a defiant shout he flung the power ball into the night sky, piercing the heavens. "Now...MIX!" A flick of his wrist caused it to expand...and suddenly there was a full moon staring down at them. The silence that followed was deafening.

Yamcha gulped, a flicker of dread stirring in the back of his brain. "Uh, guys? Is he doing what I think he is.

Goku blanched and clapped a hand over his son's eyes. "Gohan, don't look!"

Vegeta barely heard them.

"Yes! Ahahahaha! I can feel the power!" Goku blanched at the sight. Already the prince's body was bulging and swelling, his mouth becoming a snout filled with teeth. Serah looked on, smirking, her attention riveted on the Great Ape and nothing else. The willpower it must have taken not to look up and risk transforming...he wondered at it. But at long as he kept Gohan's eyes covered, it shouldn't be too bad. Hopefully Serah would be able to take on that monster without his help.

In that instant, Mira made his move from the shadows. He lunged swiftly, targeting the unprepared saiyan...

...he also lost seconds later as a fully prepared Serah appeared between them and blasted him full on with a cry of:

_"Special Beam Cannon!"_

In the next instant, a giant fist sent her sailing into the distance.

* * *

Towa hummed softly as the body crumpled miles below.

_'So, in that state she was able to damage you, my creation. Or was it the attack. Hmm. Dangerous. No matter. Still, that energy...now I want her even more!' _Her tongue flitted out, licking her full lips. It had been ages since she'd sensed a power like that. A power that, for the merest moment, had eclipsed that of her creation so utterly as to render him a mere shadow by comparison. That anger-the sheer primal fury-bottled up inside of her, might have kept her from being controlled, but the intensity of it...

...oh yes, that was an intensity she_ liked._

With a thought, she called Mira back to her and departed. The battle had been lost, but not the war.

"Next time...you will be mine."

* * *

Beast met beast and the earth screamed.

Giant fists capable of crushing mountains pounded against palms that were puny by comparison. For every miss the soil ruptured, every blow that connected sent agonizing shivers shooting up the prince's arms. Where he failed to strike at her the very planet quivered, when he blocked, his body shrieked in pain. He was at his strongest now, mightier than he'd ever been. The full of his power thrummed through him in the form of the Great Ape, a power that should have obliterated all who stood before him.

And yet...and yet...

And yet the small fighter, the Super Saiyan, was tearing him apart. And it infuriated Vegeta to no end! She hadn't looked at the moon, either! Not once! She was destroying him wholly with only her saiyan strength! The gall of it all! It was ridiculous! How was this possible?! He should be overpowering her! He should...?!

"ORAH!"

For the second time that day, Vegeta suffered the horrible indignity of having his tail pulled. The difference being that this time, Serah didn't simply tug upon it. No, instead, she grabbed at the furry appendage-with him still attached!-and began to spin, pulling him off the ground, dragging him into the air. He struggled, but his arms were too large, his torso too massive to reach around and swat her away.

"What?! Let go!"

...heh."

Still cackling she complied, hurling him away into the sky. When he flailed about, looking for her, she was already gone-

Pain.

Agony flared in his stomach as a pair of small feet smashed into his torso; the blow driving him beneath the surface of the earth like a lay there for a long moment, stunned. How...how was she doing this to him?! As a great ape, no less! Then, as though from a terribly far distance, he heard it. That infernal chant; the same one that'd nearly flattened him earlier. If that hit him...!

"Ka...

_No you don't!_

...me...

Surging upright he readied himself, arms raised and ready to block. Her voice, strong and angry called out to him from the night, the thrum of her power growing steadily louder.

...ha...

She wasn't there. Where...?

...me...

"Come out, damn you!" he thundered, shaking the landscape! "Enough of this hide and see-

_"Ha."_

Wish granted.

She came streaking down from heaven like a falling comet; her fist cracking out with all the power of a _kamehameha_, smashing into his unprepared visage as though it were made of false glass. Blood and broken fangs flew in almost every direction; stabbing into the soil with such speed that Goku and Yamcha had to physically grab Gohan and dodge, lest they be impaled. "Wow...that's nuts!" Moment later, an agonizing scream laced through the landscape.

"My eye?! What you done?!"

Ignoring the question, Serah vanished, re-appearing instantly above the prince's head. With a mighty stroke from her elbow, the saiyaness sent Vegeta crashing violently into the rocks below. A wicked smirk had been growing on her face, the basest of her saiyan instincts bubbling madly to the surface.

"Weak, so weak, so boring...kill you!"

Roaring, he flung all his power at her in a massive blast.

"GALICK GUN!"

The entire planet seemed to shake itself apart as offense met defense, the wall of angry violet rearing up to ram into the unsuspecting saiyan, travelling onward and upward until finally, finally, he could control it no longer...

Gasping, the great ape lowered his arms. "Ha...ha...did you like that?!"

_"No."_

Slowly, the smoke cleared, revealing a silhouette. No. No...it wasn't possible. But it was. Standing there, arms folded before her face, clothing reduced to little more than tatters, she stood. Superficial burns lined lengths of her arms, nothing more. Angry green eyes regarded him, thin lips curling in a snarky snear. Green sparks skittered in her aura, those now eerie _white_ eyes surveying him and finding him wanting. She straightened up slowly, the exposed muscles of her arms and legs seeming to thrum with untold power.

...still weak."

Power she now focused solely upon him.

_Oh._

Vegeta saw that smile, and something in him whimpered.

_I have blundered._

That was all he had time for before she beat the living tar out of him.

* * *

_It was over._

Vegeta's prone form lay at my feet, divested of his tail. His right arm broken, his body beaten and battered, one eye swollen shut. He was little more than a human bruise at this point. Killing him would be a mercy. No, I should kill him; after what he'd done, he deserved no less. But first...

Frowning, I fished out the Senzu bean I'd kept in my vest. Somehow it had survive the battle. My body did the rest. Instead of devouring it, I strode toward one of the prone bodies on the battlefield, the sole survivor of my maddened rampage, the one I'd let live.

Nappa.

Without thinking, I knelt down and pushed it between the brute's lips, working his jaw to make him chew. I had chosen to let him live so I decided, he would live. A swift blow to his gut forced him to swallow. There was a sharp snap of sound as his spine realigned itself. His eyes snapped open wide.

"You...?!" he gasped, sputtering as newfound strength, a zenkai, flooded his body. "Wha...what did you do!"

"Welcome." I grunted and swatted him on the head, driving him back into slumber. Content with what I'd done.

Satisfied, I strode toward to Vegeta, burning like a flare. The prince must have woken at some point, because, I noted, he was desperately trying to crawl toward a pod. Probably Nappa's, considering I'd personally had a hand in crushing his own, smaller vessel. Interestingly enough, Goku and the others were just...watching. Were they going to let him escape?

I wasn't.

Striding after him, I snared an ankle and yanked him away from his escape. Vegeta groaned, a bloody gurgle that spattered blood on my face.

"D-Damn you...if you're going to finish it...be quick about it already!"

"Agreed. You...die." My hand tensed, fingers forming a taut point that would pierce his neck. He was no threat to me-but best to be certain. Yes, I decided in that instant, I would kill him. Crush him, grind his body until tiny little pieces, bathe in his blood, and then-

_"No! Don't kill him!"_

I froze, my fingers mere inches from the neck of my prey. Someone had stopped me.

"Go...ku?"

I could've shrugged off the arm with ease, but something-sanity?-held me back. I looked at him, struggling to remember whether he was friend or foe. Everything was so blurry-so hard...to think. Eventually, he must've realized I wasn't going to attack, because he continued.

"Just let him go. He's no threat to anyone, anymore."

"He killed everyone!"

"Next time...next time, I want to be able to fight him. Without your help."

Numbed, I released him.

Vegeta snarled, forcibly expelling more blood at our feet. "Kakarott, you fool, don't expect any mercy from me...next time!"

I agreed whole-heartedly.

"Goku...you really are...an idiot...

That was my last thought before the pain finally overtook me.

* * *

_"_Why?"

"Hmm?" I craned my neck, flinching slightly at the spasm of pain there. "Why what?" Ignoring the threatening shadow towering over me -I had nothing to fear from him- I turned my gaze out on the ocean once more, watching contentedly from the hill, as Bulma's space ship ascended. Ha. The irony of my own thoughts struck me as sorely lacking. I had beaten Vegeta senseless. But my body, not ready for the power I'd summoned, hadn't taken the ki very well.

And then there were the injuries I'd sustained after fighting off Towa AND Mira...hehehe, kicked their asses too...but at a cost.

I wouldn't be moving anytime soon, not without a Senzu bean, and they wouldn't be growing for some time. I, a Super Saiyan, was as helpless as in infant and we both knew it. How could I bring that power out again? I didn't know how. I couldn't find the trigger. And without it, without that, I was as weak as any other cripple. Thanks to me, Bulma and the others at least knew about Namek-and where to go. So off they'd gone, her and Gohan and Yamcha, whilst I recovered.

Goku, now full healed, was training relentlessly while Doctor Briefs built him a spaceship of his own. I strongly suspected I would be joining him once it was finished. Once I recovered...

Even so, the looming saiyan did nothing to attack my vulnerable body. His own pride prevented it. Didn't keep him from speaking, though.

"Damnit, answer me!"

"Fuck you, that's why."

Nappa growled, unsatisfied with that answer.

"Why did you spare me?!" he demanded to know, circling around me. "More importantly, why did you give me that bean?! You're worse off than I was, now! I came here to kill you! And...And...you still saved me! Why?! Why?!"

"Would you rather I let Vegeta kill you?!" I shrieked! "That was the alternative!"

That stopped him cold.

"No...Vegeta wouldn't-

"The fuck he wouldn't! You know it, and I know it. He would've blasted you the moment you became useless to him! So, until I say otherwise, you are _my _minion, you will do as I say, and you will LIKE IT! Understand?!" My eyes flecked green, boring into his black with angry recompense for his temerity. "You'll like it...even...if I have to beat it into you...

The warrior grumbled.

"Well...I _would _like to take a shot at the bastard for ditching m-eh? Are you...crying?!

A blink, as those words hit home. I was, I realized.

Tiny hiccups fled from my lips, my body breaking down despite my best efforts to keep it otherwise. An entire year of stress and agony caught up with me in an instant, the atrocity of what I'd done cresting over me in a wave of bitter resentment and despair. I wasn't a hero. I was just a loose cannon, blasting everything in her path. If this was what it meant to be a Super Saiyan...I never wanted to touch that power again. I felt tainted inside, sick and filthy for letting my instincts rule me so utterly.

"Uh, you upset? Was it something I said?"

"I don't know, damnit!" I sobbed. "Shut up!"

"Aw, damn...I don't know how to deal with this crap." Nappa grumbled, shifting behind me. A giant hand patted my shoulder awkwardly, as though afraid it would break me. "Um...uh...there, there? You okay?" I knew he wouldn't be giving out hugs anytime soon, but it was the thought that counted. No one else had thought to ask me if I was alright, not even Goku. Oh, poor Gohan had tried, but then Chi-Chi had swooped in and all but carried him off. Apparently, I was a bad influence.

Maybe she was right.

"I'm...a monster." I muttered, staring down at my hands. Hands, that, only a week before, were veritably dripping with blood. "You don't know. You didn't _see_. I let myself enjoy that fight, the fight I never should have had. I loved it. And...something woke up. Not just the Super Saiyan, but something else, something horrible...

"No. Even now, I don't think I can control myself," My fingers bunched around the white fabric of my shirt, stifling a tremble as tears gathered in my eye. "Even now its still there, I wan't to hurt, I want to crush, I want to kill-and that's not me! I don't like it! I want it to stop! I want to be me again! Not this violent beast!"

"Hey, you're a saiyan, right?" he started, frowning. Okay, where was he going with this?

...yes?" I sniffed.

"And saiyans like to fight, right?"

...that's a given."

"Ah!" A meaty fist slapped into an equally large palm. "I've got it! All you have to do is pick your battles!"

"Beg your pardon?" I turned my head slowly, my hair bobbing from the motion. He'd moved to face me again, and despite my sorrows, I had to fight not to laugh. Bulma had given him a ridicuously large shirt to wear-a pink shirt! BAHAHAHA!-and I didn't need to see its back to know what it read. Add to that a ridiculous pair of green pants and he looked like a hippy. Sans the hair.

"Is there a point here? I asked. "Because you've lost me."

"Look, what I'm saying is...

"Is?"

...just be yourself." he continued, trying to remember where he'd been going with this. "It's like Vegeta always said, you've gotta pick your battles. I guess, ah...you could think of this as that. Fighting yourself. That's a battle, right? So you can enjoy that. Don't let your anger get the best of you and you'll be fine."

For some reason, his bumbling attempts to cheer me up actually worked. I snickered.

I continued to laugh quietly-my shoulders shaking-body, trembling. Shaking, I stared down at my motionless legs in the wheelchair. Yes. I was a monster. A beast, unable to control herself in the head of battle; a wild animal unable to tell friend from foe. I didn't deserve pity, or an explanation. But I felt I owed him one, at least.

"For a self-proclaimed idiot, you can be quite eloquent."

"Uh...thanks?" he still looked worried.

"Fine. I'm fine, you big lug." My hand rose, stubbornly scrubbing my face clean until I was certain all traces of my weakness were gone. "To answer your first question...you remind me of, well...me, I guess."

A moment of silence passed between us. "You spared me...because I remind you, of you?" he grunted, confused. "I don't get you, boss."

"Boss? I like that."

I laughed again; it sounded annoyingly like a giggle to my own ears. "Don't worry about it Nappy; I don't get **myself**, half the time. Now, hurry up and carry me over to the tower. I've got an idea." I pointed with great determination at his shoulder. "C'mon, pick me up already!"

"Eh? But your legs-

"Will be fine! Now, mush!"

The big brute blanched, but did as asked, picking me up, cradling me as though I were made of glass-hoisting me onto his shoulder. I cackled, enjoying the moment, and his discomfort. Yes, I was a monster. I knew it. Accepted it. If I was going to live as a monster then I would work to master it, that my instincts would no longer command me, but I them. So for now...I was going to enjoy this as much as possible. Maybe I'd find the way back to my era. Maybe not.

But for now...

"HI-HO SILVER!" I cried! "AWAAAAAAAAAAAAY!"

Napa groaned.

"I AIN'T NO GODAMN HORSE!"

**A/N: Aaaaaaaaaaand there we go! I've already screwed up time, without even trying! Oi...**

**Remember, this is my veeery first try at a self-insert story*blushes furiously*and I pray to god that I didn't do to badly. I'm a master writer when it comes to Naruto, Bleach, and other works of fiction, but they be just that. FICTION. This is me inserted into this story, bits of my life plumbed out before you, and, well, to be honest, its a tad embarassing. Especially the bit with me getting genderswapped. That was hard as hell to do, considering I am, most certainly, a DUDE and straight as a ruler.**

**But, eh, in this story, I thought I'd shake things up a bit...**

** Naturally, I plan to go more in depth with certain characters than most...including new events and all sorts of chaos as I plunge into the Dragonball Xenoverse! It'll make ya laugh too, I promise! God, I really am going to ruin time as we know it int this one...**

**So, in the Immortal Words of Atlas...**

**...Review, Would You Kindly?**

**...hope ya'll like it! And of course, enjoy the preview! 'Tis a little sad...but it also contains a surprise! It'll make ya laugh, too...**

**(Preview)**

_I raised my palm, trying, and failing not to snort._

_"Captain Ginyu, right? Mind showing me that pose again?"_

_"Ah, but of course! Anything for the newest member of the force!"_

_I tried very hard not to laugh._

_Man, what a complete switch!_

**R&amp;R! =D**


	5. Beware the Bean

**A/N: Howdy, ya'll! I've been playing Dragonball Xenoverse as of late, and this idea sort of just came to me in a dream, as it were. I've been suffering through a bad breakup, and I must've eaten something weird, or played WAY too much of this game, because I had a weird dream.**

**Naturally it gave me an idea, and so I made a few tweaks to it. I'm honestly bracing myself for the backlash of even trying this, but in all honesty, I simply couldn't bear to let the idea die.**

**I thought of doing a Naruto crossover with this-let me know if I should!-but then I realized the aspect that truly makes the game great is that its you playing it; after all, you, the player are essentially the one Trunks wished for, in essence. Sure, it might be nice to write what everyone else was writing, but then I realized something; something I haven't done before. So...**

**Again, be sure to play the game yourself or at least familiarize yourself with it...**

**...else you'll be hopelessly lost. I'll leave it to ya'll to guess which aspects of my life written here are fiction and which aren't! Sorry if its short! Expect much more to come! As this is my first self-insert story, PLEASE BE NICE! I worked really, really, REALLY hard on this! And there's also a cute little scene here, too...as well as a major shift in history...**

**...We're veering off course here, folks! Hope you've brought your tissues and popcorn, because it gets really emotional...and bloody as hell. Some TFS jokes in here too...**

**ALSO. I wish to address something. The annoying matter of a hater/flamer I blocked some time ago, who continues to pester me through anonymous reviews. The name you ask?**

**DOOM MARINE 54.**

**This annoying little bugger has not only refused all attempts to talk-hence why he's been blocked in the first place, but all he seems capable of spewing is needless, vile hate. I've seen his work on other stories, these cruel, callous words that offer no constructive criticism at all, but as of late, he seems to have taken to targeting me and just about EVERY story I've ever written. Take his latest review for one of my few self-insert stories, "I am Not a Pirate. This is what he had to say.**

_"No more like this is your 400th self insert story since you other ones are self-insert that only vaguely resemble the characters their about. You're a real loser if you need to write hundred of stories with your ideal self as the protagonist dating cartoons just to make it through your vacant existence."_

**Now, isn't that friendly of him, ladies and gentlemen? I think we can all clap our hands knowing there is such a cruel person in the world. I'm amazed that some people can hate me so much for wanting to bring joy to others in the realm of fanfiction; because THAT my dear marine, is why I write. No such concepts as wanting fame, or pride, but because it makes people happy, and their happiness in turn, is what inspires me to go to new heights for them. Reviews are merely a way of letting me know what they think, something that I enjoy.**

**Well, now that we've finished with that little asinine prick...**

**...I should also let you all know that I am enjoying a nice little vacation atm so now I have PLENTY of time to make these chapters-for all my stories, nice and long juicy! Hope ya'll enjoy. I admit, I've been looking forward to writing this chapter for a LONG time. Behold the hilarity, folks! **

"The universe needs something more, something...worse, to defend her. She needs a new myth. A legend more powerful than I can be right now. A legend that can only rise from the ashes of my body. Maybe it doesn't need a hero...but a monster."

_~?_

**Beware the Bean**

_Senzu beans are totally awesome._

_That is all I have to say on the matter, folks._

_Honestly, why didn't Goku and co. just wish for an unlimited amount of these things?! They're the second best thing to dragonballs! Questions for later. Its getting hard to think now; I have to physically wrench my mind back to the task at hand, to my own thoughts, and not those of this body. Every day, I feel like I'm losing a piece of myself that she-Serah-is becoming me as much as I am her. That anger, that rage, that sheer, deadly brutality that came pouring out against Vegeta..._

_...I'm scared, guys. I really am._

_Still no contact from Trunks. If he really wanted me out of this timeline, he would brought a time machine or...something. But, no, nothing. I'm terrified I might have inadvertantly erased him from existence. Me, a man trapped in this DAMN SAIYAN BODY that seems intent on taking my pysche and grinding it to dus._

_I still can't look at myself naked-WHY THE HELL WOULD I WANT TO?!-and despite the occasional bout of awkwardness that comes when I still refer to myself as male, I think I'm starting to adjust. The fact that I'm still straight as a pole complicates things, sure, but its not like I expect to swoon over anyone here, right?_

_Right?_

_Oh, god, I'm so doomed._

_Still...I finally get an excuse to use my most FAVORITE of all lines..._

* * *

"SENZU BEAN~!"

Nappa balked as Serah vaulted upright out of the wheelchair with a delighted yelp, grinning like an idiot. Her bright, vibrant eyes flashed like black pools of flaming oil, burning with new life; an inferno of delight burning away the depression that had so consumed the chair-bound-saiyan mere moments before. Muscles twitched violently, shattering the cast on her arm, her once limp legs standing straight and proud with all the pride the saiyan race possessed, bounding around the tower with renewed strength and agility.

"Alright," Korin continued smiling patiently. "You should be back at full strength now, Serah. How do you feel?"

"Full strength?!" she exclaimed, never breaking pace, "I feel ten times stronger than I was before! I feel invincible! Senzu bean for the win, baby!"

Only one phrase came to the Nappa's mind at that.

_'What. The. Hell.'_

He'd heard tell of the miraculous powers of Senzu Beans-even experienced it himself-but to actually see it-if Yajirobe hadn't had that_ extra bean_ hidden away in his sash, she'd still be trapped in that chair. Now, she was running around like a hyperactive child, laughing her ass off. It was a strange thing to see; this deadly, hardened veteran of countless- or so he assumed!- battlefields, bouncing off the walls. In a way it reminded him of his childhood, off the other female saiyans and their near-limitless amounts of energy.

Serah was certainly no exception, it seemed!

He'd known that the miraculous green beans were capable of advanced healing, but this...to witness it firsthand was something else entirely!

"Okay, okay, that's enough." Korin called, tapping his staff gently to gain the saiyaness's attention. "Settle down."

_"Osu~!"_

Effortlessly alighting upon one hand, Serah swung herself into a crouched position on a nearby rail beside him. Freed from its constraints her tail twitched happily behind her like a wild an' writhing thing, swaying side to side alluring. "Why don't we have more of these?! Just think of the difference they could make!" Standing this close he could feel the energy radiating off the young woman, see her muscles twitching as she fought to try and stay still, the way her legs bent, the gentle curve of her hips, of-

_Down boy!_

Smacking his revived libido into oblivion, the bald warrior observed the agile saiyaness intently, frowning at her lighthearted behaviours. Just who was she? There had been countless saiyans on planet Vegeta, and it was impossible to remember them all. Still, he liked to think he would have at least _recalled _someone like her...

"Be that as it may," Korin answered, responding to a question he hadn't heard, "Senzu beans take a long time to grow, especially now. You were lucky we found that last one!"

"We'll have to wish for a lifetime crop supply when we get the dragonballs back." the ebon-haired lass answered, grinning. "No big deal."

"If, you mean." the cat countered.

Sera beamed.

_"When."_

Nappa twitched.

"Um...excuse me? Feeling kinda left out, here."

Serah glanced at him askance looking baffled, her dark, spiky tresses bouncing from the motion.

"We're going after them once Briefs builds us a ship, of course." she said, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world. "To Namek. You, me, and Goku. Didn't I already tell you that?" Huh. Now that he thought about it, Nappa vaguely recalled her mentioning somesuch thing, but he'd been so baffled by her sudden recovery that he'd nearly forgotten it altogether. Something else struck him then-something odd. It was the way she had spoken of their saiyan brother in arms.

"Wait, I thought his name was Kakarot?"

"It is." her head bobbed. "But it's also Goku. So that's what I call him."

"But you're a saiyan!"

Her smile became a hesitant one. "So...?"

"So you should call him Kakarot!" he insisted.

"What, carrot?"

"You mean Kakarot."

"No," her head shook, "I like Goku, better."

Nappa could feel the beginnings of a migraine coming on, veins jumping in his forehead. "But its his saiyan name! Don't you have one?!"

A moment of silence passed between them.

"My saiyan name is Cellery." she replied at last. "I liked Serah better. So I took it."

"You should still call him Kakarot."

"Goku, I say!"

"Kakarot."

"Goku."

By the moon, she was enjoying this, wasn't she?

"Go~ku~!"

SHE WAS!

"AHEM!" Korin interjected with a cough, pawing at his whiskers. "If we could get back to the matter at hand?" At her blank stare, he chose to continue, "What I'm trying to say here is, I'm surprised by your strength."

"What? Why?"

"Well, quite frankly, I didn't think it was possible for someone like you to exist and be pure of heart. From what I've seen so far of you saiyans, I'd say you're a regular Goku; kind, decent, and honest to a fault. I'll have to exclude your little friend over there, considering he originally came here to kill us."

To Nappa's infinite disbelief, the girl colored at that, becoming almost shy and withdrawn. Her tail went rigid, curling around her waist like a noose beneath her gi. Nappa balked a bit; it was a complete one-eighty from the outgoing, hyperactive warrior she'd been only moments before.

"I...ah...had plenty of training, I guess." she muttered, flushing.

"Care to give me an estimate?"

...I'm not becoming that _thing_ again if that's what you mean." her gaze went flat. "I won't be able to control it."

"Oh, no no no," a paw waved frantically. "I don't want you to transform. I'm just curious to get a general look at your power."

"Well sure...

"HEY!"

For the second time that day, Nappa found himself pushed beyond his limits. He was damn sick and tried of being ignored! "If you want to see power, I'll _show_ you power!"

Serah blanched, stepping forward. "Nappa, I wouldn't-

_**"GRAH!"**_

With a thunderous crack of power, the floor of the tower cratered beneath their feet, denting outward in a shower of sparks and stone. Nappa even surprised himself! _'Healing after that beating she gave me...I feel at least five times stronger than before! This is incredible! I'm probably even stronger than Vegeta, now!'_

* * *

_(Leagues away...)_

_"Achoo!"_

_Battered and bruised in his pod, the Prince of all Saiyans sneezed as he hurtled across the galaxy. Groaning, a bruised eye squinted into the black of space._

_"Gdoamnit, Nappa..._

* * *

"Ha!" Nappa grinned, letting his blazing aura abate. "Howdya like that?"

"Meh." Korin shrugged. "I've sensed bigger."

_"MEH?!"_

"Serah?" the cat inquired? "Wanna show us your stuff?"

Nappa swung around, mildly dismayed to find that his outburst of power hadn't even made his leader flinch. If anything, she was smiling.

He tried to put on a brave face, to keep from admitting that he'd been blatantly showing off-stupid fool!-in a vain attempt to impress her.

She was not deceived for a moment. She brushed a shoulder against his, their clothes briefly rustling, and smiling at him until he was forced to smile back-just a little. Yajirobe and Korin fidgeted slightly at the sudden display of camraderie, happy that they were happy, capered about, glad at the prospect of a long respite.

Striding forward, she brushed past him, chuckling.

"Here goes nothing, HAAAA...!" Loosing a mighty shout, the female saiyan flared her aura; the crimson sheen of ki bulking her muscles ever so slightly, engulfing her form in the shimmering scarlet shroud of a kaioken. Eyes shining as though lit from within, she turned that glowing gaze upon Nappa. Then she smirked, fist clenching at her sides, arms rising overhead. _"...aaaaaaaaaargh!"_ Cracks appeared in the marble pillars of Korin's tower, threatening to crumble beneath that thunderous flare of energy.

A lone bead of sweat trailed down his skull; within good reason! Had he been wearing a scouter, it would have shattered long ago.

If his ki was a storm, then Serah's was a bloody hurricane.

Korin blanched.

"Knock it off, Serah!" the cat cried! "You're gonna wreck the tower!

"Sorry!"

Serah's aura cut out abruptly as one of the pillars violently imploded on itself, showering her and Nappa with shards of broken stone. Lifting his head slowly, he craned his neck loosely and somewhat erratically to _look_ at the direction of the voice-a twitching, spasmodic movement to his motions.

Because her eyes were_ green._

Serah glared for several seconds without letting up, veins throbbing visibly in her forehead. Those deep verant eyes were cast in shadow and gleaming with baleful jade light. His lips were curled back almost of their own accord, barring the blackette's teeth in a decidedly vicious snarl. And then, exhaling, the snarl vanished. Those unholy eyes faded, leaving her gasping softly.

"So, whaddya think? That was about a quarter of what I can do."

"A fourth?!" Korin groaned. "Are you nuts?!

"Found 'em!" Yajirobe's sudden cry from across the tower put paid to those words.

"Found what?"

"Another bag of beans!" the portly samuria replied, plunking himself down on the floor. "Somebody left it under the couch!"

"That was _you_, ya fat lard! We lost those months ago!"

Serah's grin was decidedly trollish as she snagged the bag. "Out of beans, hmm?"

Korin'd had just about all he could take from this wily woman!

"J-Just go!"

"You should probably go collect Goku and give him those, or something! Just get!"

"Osu!" She saluted merrily. "C'mon, Nappa!"

The larger saiyan blanched as she took hold of his arm.

"Wait wait wait, WHA-

That was all he had time for before the crazy girl grabbed him by the arm and teleported.

* * *

I am a liar, liar, liar!

Even now I can feel my face burning from embarrassment. My anger. Shame. _Cellery?!_ Complete ass pull on my part, and a bad one at that! _Whowhatwhenwhywhereandhow_ the hell do you come up with something like that?! I swear to god, if he starts calling me that I'm going to break his spine! Again! What the hell was I thinking?! But I had to say something! If I didn't that'd make me look suspicious and the _last _thing I need is for my own allies to start questioning me...

Something else to think about, I guess, I mused to myself as I alighted upon the grassy lawn of Capsule Corp. Strange. I paused, glancing about. I knew I'd sensed Goku's ki around here, I'd locked onto him with just a short burst of instant transmission, so WHERE in blazes was he-

-HA!"

Oh, there he was.

My eyes cut left as a blue beam burst across the horizon; a streak of sapphire manifesting itself through the clouds. Despite my relative vantage point, I couldn't help but feel a little awed at the sight of a Kamehameha wave up close like this; the same, timeless attack that had defeated so many a foe before. Using it was one thing, but actually seeing it...

...well, its really something.

"Oi, Goku!" I cried, waving. "Down here! Here~!"

What was I doing, waving like an idiot, oi...

"Oh, hey!"

My face creased in a slight frown as the blue streak across the sky vanished; moments later the great protector of earth was standing before me. More importantly, there wasn't a hole in his chest this time, and I wasn't locked in a berserker rage, trying to kill him. For perhaps the first time since that first fateful divergence, I actually got to lock eyes with the great Goku...and shake his hand.

Damnit, I felt like such a fanboy. I refuse to use the term girl!

"Look, I wanted to say sorry about before...I wasn't really in control of myself...

"Hey, its fine! No big deal!"

"Well, he said the ship should be ready in a few more hours, so...

"Shit, that was fast!" I sweatdropped.

"Hey, you got some more beans! I thought we were out?"

"Well, we were...

I thought about that for a moment.

Just as I was mentioning the need for Senzu beans Yajirobe not only finds one in his sash, but a bag? Right. When. I. Needed. Them. Coincidence? I think not. I am after all, trapped in a game. Maybe I was overthinking things again. The chances of a useful item manifesting itself _exactly _when I needed it was slim to none. Of course, there was another upswing to all this. A silver lining to all these dark clouds looming over my head.

_I'd never felt so powerful in all my life._

Eating that Senzu Bean-recovering from that last battle-had given me one hell of a boost.

A boost that, if my guess was right, made me _stronger _than Goku himself. Or was it?

Power levels WERE bullshit, after all...

Didn't want that! Do! Not! Want!

"So, I guess you're with us, then." Goku drawled, glancing at Nappa. "Good to have you!"

Nappa eyed the arm in disbelief.

"Just like that?"

"Just like that!"

"You're not even going to ask why I changed sides...?"

Goku blinked. "Well, I'm guessing it has something to do with Serah...

_Bingo._

Right, Nappa hadn't been the one to kill any of his friends in this timeline, that was Vegeta...

"When someone earns my respect, that means I do not rest, Kakarot. I devote all my energy, everything I have, to serving them." To my surprise, the great big brute quoted these words most sgately as he glanced at me, folding both arms across his broad barrel of a chest. "For better or worse, we're stuck with each other until this is over."

I couldn't help but smile at that.

"Wow, that's pretty deep, big guy."

"Really? Thought it was a little over the top there, at the end."

"You either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain." I mumbled, remembering what I'd nearly done only days ago. Was that my destiny in this game? To lose myself to the madness of my body -to become a true saiyan- a mindless killing machine thing incapable of rational thought? I felt the beast stir within me, and the thought made me shudder.

"Well, gee." Goku frowned, rubbing the back of his neck, "That sounds kinda dark."

I felt my eye twitch, ever so slightly. Trapped in a confined space? With two men?

_'I am a man! Male! I will not be influenced by such feminine thoughts! Think manly things! Football! Wrestling! Monster trucks!'_ I relentlessly slapped my cheeks, striking myself from the daze. My mind knew that I was wasn't of the female persuasion, but my body had other thoughts, treacherous thoughts...sweaty thoughts...

Oh dear, sweet kami.

I was doomed.

At that very moment, I saw it. A flash. A glint of light burning brightly across the horizon. At first I dismissed it as nothing, but then I remembered the events of a certain movie. Goku must've sensed it as well, because he turned, frowning. Nappa mirrored his expression, mustache twitching.

"Hey, is that a falling comet or something? It looks kinda big...

The blood in my veins turned to ice water.

Wait a minute, this was just like...

Oh, hell no!

HE WASN'T EVEN SUPPOSED TO BE IN THIS GAME!

**A/N: Aaaaaaaaaaand there we go! I've already screwed up time, without even trying! And yup, we're dealing the LORD SLUG now before we jump off to Namek! I thought it'd be nice to give Nappa and Goku a chance to really shine, considering the Earth now has all of THREE people to defend her. Not to mention Towa and Mira still lurking about, so...**

**...IT'LL BE A GOOD ONE!**

**Remember, this is my veeery first try at a self-insert story*blushes furiously*and I pray to god that I didn't do to badly. I'm a master writer when it comes to Naruto, Bleach, and other works of fiction, but they be just that. FICTION. This is me inserted into this story, bits of my life plumbed out before you, and, well, to be honest, its a tad embarassing. Especially the bit with me getting genderswapped. That was hard as hell to do, considering I am, most certainly, a DUDE and straight as a ruler.**

**But, eh, in this story, I thought I'd shake things up a bit...**

** Naturally, I plan to go more in depth with certain characters than most...including new events and all sorts of chaos as I plunge into the Dragonball Xenoverse! It'll make ya laugh too, I promise! God, I really am going to ruin time as we know it int this one...**

**So, in the Immortal Words of Atlas...**

**...Review, Would You Kindly?**

**...hope ya'll like it! And of course, enjoy the preview! 'Tis a little sad...but it also contains a surprise! It'll make ya laugh, too...**

**(Preview)**

_My vision exploded in bloody stars as a massive fist smashed my nose in._

_Why did I think stalling him was a good idea, again?!_

_Kaioken flaring, I burst backwards-_

_-too slow._

_The tail closed around my neck, squeezing, relentlessly._

_And yet, the monster within me only laughed._

_"Come on, then!" I roared! "Beat me until your knuckles bleed...and why stop there? You know there's only one way to stop me!" My snide remarks got me a faceful of namek dirt. My body screamed as that thick tail relentlessly smashed me int o the ground._

_"Persistent monkey!"_

_Ohhhhhh, there went a rib._

_"What do you have to say now?!"_

_ I forced a laugh through blood-bleached teeth._

**_"Quack."_**

_"Quack? QUACK?! Are you still mocking me?!"_

_"You know what they say, the night is darkest just before the dawn. And the dawn is coming."_

_Ah, there it was again. The anger. Rage. I could see I was getting to him, that he'd forgotten all about Piccolo, and by definition, Gohan. Just a few seconds more...right? Time was getting fuzzy in my head, blurring with the lack of air in my lungs, squeezing the life out of me._

"CEASE YOUR MEAGER QUOTES! THEY MEAN NOTHING!"

I only laughed harder.

_"All this-all this rage. All directed at me and for what?" Losing air now. Not good. Not good...! "If you'd actually let me finish a sentence you might learn something! You might learn that we're not so different! We're both monsters by design! The only difference is, that I...didn't..._

_My hands twitched toward my head, trembling._

_"What's that, girl? I can't hear you..._

_...THAT I DIDN'T CHOOSE THIS, YOU BASTARD!_

_"What are-_

_"SOLAR FLARE MOTHERFUCKER!"_

**R&amp;R! =D**


	6. Big Green

**A/N: Howdy, ya'll! I've been playing Dragonball Xenoverse as of late, and this idea sort of just came to me in a dream, as it were. I've been suffering through a bad breakup, and I must've eaten something weird, or played WAY too much of this game, because I had a weird dream.**

**Naturally it gave me an idea, and so I made a few tweaks to it. I'm honestly bracing myself for the backlash of even trying this, but in all honesty, I simply couldn't bear to let the idea die.**

**I thought of doing a Naruto crossover with this-let me know if I should!-but then I realized the aspect that truly makes the game great is that its you playing it; after all, you, the player are essentially the one Trunks wished for, in essence. Sure, it might be nice to write what everyone else was writing, but then I realized something; something I haven't done before. So...**

**Again, be sure to play the game yourself or at least familiarize yourself with it...**

**...else you'll be hopelessly lost. I'll leave it to ya'll to guess which aspects of my life written here are fiction and which aren't! Sorry if its short! Expect much more to come! As this is my first self-insert story, PLEASE BE NICE! I worked really, really, REALLY hard on this! And there's also a cute little scene here, too...as well as a major shift in history...**

**...We're veering off course here, folks! Hope you've brought your tissues and popcorn, because it gets really emotional...and bloody as hell. Some TFS jokes in here too...**

**ALSO! **

**Go buy TeamFourStar's Moustache song on Itunes! Its awesome, and really got me writing this chapter! And a surprise...**

_"W-What are you?! Monster! MONSTER!"  
_

_"Monster? No...I AM THE DEVIL!"_

_Lord Slug and...__?!_

**Big Green**

_Shit!_

_Fuck! _

_PIIIIIISSSS!_

_That is all I have to say on the matter, folks._

_Why in the nine circles of hell is Slug here?! And how am I going to explain this?!_

_Yes, yes, yes, I KNOW his clothes are technically in the game, but I'm pretty damned sure the old bastard himself ain't in it! If I remember clearly, he kicked Goku's ASS and everyone only won because of the good old Deus Ex Machina. And if Mira and Towa interfere...oh, that's not going to be fun. At all. Okay, okay, calm down. Right, right, Big Green-ha!-Slug had a weakness, didn't he? Which...I can't exactly remember. _

_Don't look at me like that! _

_It's been ages since I've seen the movie! How am I supposed to remember every little bit of it, eh?! GRAH, what was it, what was it, what was that limey old bastard's weakness..._

_...I can't bloody remember!_

* * *

"Shit! Fuck! Piss!"

Goku didn't rightly understand why Serah was swearing like a snarling sailor ahead of them, but he knew she was angry. He just couldn't see_ why._ She'd taken off like a bat out of hell the moment that strange ship had fallen from the heavens, leaving him and Nappa to follow in haste. This close, she was almost blinding to gaze upon. Her ki burned around her like a falling star, angry and fierce and red, threatening to blast them away at the slightest provocation, steadily banking toward the east were the vessel

"Um...are you okay?"

_"Motherfucking bitch whore! _Why can't I freakin' remember...?!" Another litany of aimless curses followed, causing the goodhearted saiyan to flinch as her foul words washed over him. Yikes! Not even Chi-Chi talked like that! Indeed, Serah looked all of three seconds from transforming and wreaking havoc on anyone in her path; but for the life of him he just couldn't understand _why._ He'd never seen her this rattled before. Even against Vegeta there had been some semblance of calm, a veneer of civility masking the beast beneath.

_Here, there was none of that at all._

Nappa chuckled at the slew of curses, utterly unfazed as he drifted behind them.

"She's got quite a mouth on her, eh, Kakarot?"

Black eyes cut back to him.

"Nappa, I will _burn _you."

"So what's the problem?" Goku found himself asking, shouting ahead, curious. "Who is this guy?"

"His name is Lord Slug," she replied at last, speaking haltingly. "He's a galactic warlord who likely wants to terafreeze this planet and convert it into a starship for himself and his own forces. See those clouds?" Her hand jerked up at the rapidly darkening blot on the horizon, spreading outward in every direction. "Long story short, that's going to kill everyone and everything on Earth. He's complete and utter scum that needs to be wiped out. End of story."

"Then we stop him." he replied.

"Its not that simple. He's stronger than anything you've faced. Even Vegeta."

"And you know this, how?" Nappa challenged.

Serah jerked to a halt, dark eyes glimmering with uncertainty. "I don't want to talk about it_-there it is!"_

With a sudden cry she doubled her speed, streaking towards the now not-so-distant shadow in the distance. From this height, he thought he saw a crowd of soldiers-people-even, but he couldn't be sure. He couldn't just go in guns blazing if there were innocents in the way. No, they needed to draw them away, before good people were hurt, or worse

"That bastard!"

Serah seemed to hold no such compunctions however, because her palms were already lit with trails of scarlet ki, twin orbs burning bright in the palms of her hands. He was just about to warn her, tell her to hold back, when the telltale crackle of energy blasts reached their ears.

In the next instant, he heard the screams as Slug's men opened fire on the populace below in golden trails of ki. Goku felt his heart lurch as they were cut down. Without the dragonballs, they couldn't be revived! Serah likely shared the same thought; because her aura suddenly blew through the roof, lightning the dark sky like a dying sun.

_"SLUG!"_

A furious cry issued forth from the saiyaness's throat, the dark mane of her hair streaking wildly after her as she descended, entering into the fray. Purple and white flew as she smashed down amongst the men, sending soldiers sailing with wanton abandon. And, even in his horror, her assault gave him pause.

One swing of those slim arms disemboweled legions, a single kick obliterated entire squads. Blood sprayed wildly as she shattered skulls and limbs alike, always moving, striking...!

Reality came back to him with a sharp rush of shock.

"Hey, wait! There are people down there!"

All he received was a harsh cry of"

_"MINE!"_

"Just like old times!" Nappa bellowed, diving in after her! "But even better!"

* * *

_(Meanwhile, in the bowels of Slug's ship...)_

"What's this?"

His eyes fixed on the image set before him, the lone saiyaness ripping through his men as though they were made of cardboard. Her wild laughter reverberated off the empty halls of his vessel, clashing harshly with the relative silence afforded by the depths of his inner sanctum. Wild black eyes seemed to devour the battlefield, harsh beams lancing out to obliterate legions of his soldiers in an instant. Blows rebounded harmless off her, bolts of ki splashing harmlessly aside as she waded into the fry.

"My word! What is she?!"

"I believe that's a saiyan, sire." Angila remarked, frowning. "Funny, I thought they were extinct."

"Ehehe!" Medamatcha snickered. "Try telling that to her!"

At his side, Wings gulped, his great bulk shifting restlessly as he observed the slaughter.

"Sire...perhaps it would be prudent to consider their offer."

"Hmm," the overlord conceded, "Perhaps you're right."

"See?" a soft, sultry voice purred. "Do you really think you'll be able to stand up to her in your current state?"

Slug scowled, rising from his throne. His pruned, wrinkled face twitched in a scowl, contemplating the two warriors standing before him, the latter's boot resting upon the skull of his latest victim. _'Madness!'_ Their power was magnificent, leagues above even his own. But he was Lord Slug! He would not cower before this woman and her creation! Thus snarling, he pushed his withered body off the chair, towering over them. They had to be enemies of this "creature" else, they wouldn't have come here in the first place.

"You know, you've got some nerve barging in here, demanding that I listen to you...

Towa smiled.

"Would you like to make a deal, old man?"

Slug grunted. "What kind of deal?"

"Just something to level the playing field."

"Such as?"

_The demoness simply smiled and waved her wand._

* * *

Kill.

If I had to pick a word to define that emotion, it would be that.

_Kill!_

Have you ever experienced a moment of pure weightlessness, helplessness, knowing that there was nothing you could do? That, no matter how fast you were, how strong, it simply wouldn't make a difference? You see a dozen lives cut short right in front of you, and there's nothing you can do about it. All your might, worthless.

**KILL!**

The difference being, no Dragonballs.

_**K-I-L-L!**_

No wishing them back, no redo, no revivals, no deus ex machina to sweep in and save the day. In that moment I felt as wretched as I had when I'd first lost control only days ago. Too slow. Not fast enough. By the time I'd reached the crash site dozens were already dead and more were well on their way. Humans-funny how I thought of them as that, now-weren't built to stand up to close, exploding rounds of ki. Each death felt like an angry, hot round of molten lead in my chest.

_**KILL THEM ALL~!**_

And the rage took me.

My fist swung brutally backward as I finally reached the fray, a savage backhand violently disemboweling the nearest grunt. By then the others were already swarming me, pouncing, trying to drive me to the ground. In the same instant I spun, a blade of ki scything between my clenched fingertips. Sauzer blade. Always liked that one.

Ki met flesh and flesh yielded, spraying away in white and purple pieces.

Snarling, I slammed an elbow up into another's face, shattering his helmet and exposing him to the waning lights of day, then, took the second nearest down with a kick to the leg that splintered bone like rotten wood. In the same breath my hands closed upon the skulls of two more unfortunate guards and squeezed with my full might. Their heads exploded like overripe grapes, their contents under pressure. Blood spattered outwards in every direction-a fine red mist signalling the end of four men by the time the rest blinked.

Laughing, I turned and spat, a scarlet flare of ki roaring forward to immolate dozens more.

Before the others could do more than cry out, before they could even _think_ to defend themselves from me, I lunged at them, snapping forward in a sudden burst of speed. After that, the rest became a blur. I lost myself to that blood rage, a scarlet blur that ripped out bones and caught others by the shoulder. I snagged a startled soldier and spun him around like a top-using his body as a shield even as another storm of ki slammed into me, propelling my latest meat shield away into the nearest wall, leaving my right hand free to discharge a _kienzan_ into their ranks.

More blood. More laughter. More violence.

Beautiful, gratuitous violence.

I barely even noticed when Nappa and Goku joined the fray; by then, I was already too far gone. My body was an instrument of violence, acting on its own. No thought. No rationality. I went full Saiyan and ceded to my instincts. By the time it was over, and my hands had no more bodies to butcher, my mind realized what my body had done. A wave of bile shot up my stomach, scalding my throat. I'd enjoyed it. Their deaths. Every bit of my had _savored _the killing, the slaughter, the blood drying...on my hands.

I didn't regret their deaths, not in the least; but I regretted enjoying them as much as I had. Even now, every fiber of my being ached for a new challenge, a song of battle burning itself in my blood. Ryan fought Serah, and for a terrible moment, I could feel myself slipping, sliding on the slippery slope of insanity.

_What was I becoming?_

"Uh...are you okay?"

I rounded on Goku, wild-eyed. "Okay? OKAY?! Do I look okay to you?!"

Nappa whistled.

"Remind me to stay on your good side, boss."

"Nappa." I grunted; couldn't find any other words. Then it hit me. That was it! Words! "I need you do to something for me."

"Eh?" he blinked.

"Say mustache," I demanded.

"Mustache."

"Not like that. Drag out the "a" at the end."

"Uh_...mustaaaaaache?"_

Ah. Better.

It was a silly joke really, but it helped me to reassert my tenuous grip on reality, if only for a moment. I felt like laughing, but it was _my _laugh, not the laugh of the wild beast that demanded release. Was this how Broly felt? This insanity, this madness, this _thing _creeping up inside of you, trying to take control? Oh lordie, fighting him was going to suck so much-

"Well, well, well. What do we have here?

-ass." I finished with a scowl as a trio of figures emerged from the bowels of the spaceship.

_Angila._

_Medamatcha._

_Wings._

B-list baddies, barely worth any real attention. Anyone could've beaten them. Hell, YAMCHA probably could have taken them on and that was saying something! Under any other circumstance I wouldn't have given them so much as a passing glance...until I saw it. There it was, the violent, purple aura engulfing them, burgeoning their ki to new heights. Their eerie red eyes burning like hot coals in their skulls...

_**"Let's see how you fare this time, my dear."** _A low, sultry voice like silk roiling through honey purred in my ear, stabbing into my mind._** "Try not to disappoint me."**_

_Towa!_

But the presence was gone, even as I sought it out.

"So, one for each of us, eh?" Nappa cracked his knuckles, drawing me back to reality. "Good. I could use the warmup. Dibs on the big guy!"

Wings bristled. "What was that, baldy?!"

A muscle jumped in the larger man's jaw. "Ohhhhh, I'm going to _enjoy_ this far more than I should."

"Aw," Goku sulked, "I wanted to fight him."

"Relax, Kakarot. You can have the other guy.

Despite my own tension, I couldn't help but pout.

"What, so I get the small fry?!"

"HEY!"

"Ahem," Angila coughed, "If you're quite done over there, I feel I should warn you; you have no chance against us." his every word oozed supreme arrogance, confidence no doubt stemming from his newfound powerup at the hands of Towa. "Lord Slug has claimed this planet." he declared proudly. "Abide by his wishes and you may live. Defy him and die."

"And if we refuse?"

Angila raised an arm...

...and my blood turned to ice.

There, clutched in a clawed hand, was a boy. Not much older than Gohan. His messy brown hair was coated in what I hoped-prayed-!was mud. Because if that was blood...

"The witch mentioned you had a soft spot for children." Angila mused, seeing my stricken gaze. "Shall we see if still holds true?"

"Mommy...

"Put him down!"

"Very well." he scoffed, tossing him. "Catch."

My eyes snapped towards the tumbling form in the same instant that the smug bastard smirked. I barely saw it; because my body was already moving, already lunging-!

"Too slow." the alien flicked a hand, a single point of light burning at the end of his finger. "You've sealed his fate."

_"DON'T!"_

* * *

_**THOOM.**_

Nappa barely saw Serah lunge forward, throwing herself between the boy and the blast.

And then she was gone.

The explosion ripped through the air like a sonic boom, tossing her to the ground in a column of orange flame and smoke. Nappa barely felt it, such was his shock. Gone. Extinguished. That same fierce, fiery saiyan who had spared him for reasons he still didn't understand...was dead. The indomitable creature who'd stood up to Vegeta and spat in his face, wiped from existence. A lonely girl who feared her own power and struggled with all her might to cling to her humanity, that silly woman with a wry sense of humor, laying down her life for the greater good.

_"Do you think I'm a monster?" those tear-soaked eyes, looking up at him._

Just like that.

What a waste!

She deserved better!

To his dismay, the larger saiyan actually felt a flicker of _guilt._ Then anger. Followed by rage. Why? The rational part of his mind told him he shouldn't fee such things; he'd barely known Serah. Yet, in the time that he'd had, she'd struck him as something-someone-special. A good person, if a saiyan could ever be called one. He tried to fight it, he really did. Still the rage came, a terrible tide that wiped all rational thoughts away, swept them out to see, lost and forgotton. A muscle throbbed in his jaw, then his temple, then every part of him.

Rage.

Blood vessels burst in his eyes.

_Rage._

His fists involuntarily clenched.

**_RAGE!_**

"Oh, did we upset the big one? Are you sad because your little friend couldn't stand up my power?" Angila scoffed, lowering a smoldering palm. "Well, swallow it! Because she won't be the last to go!"

Something snapped, and his eyes went white.

"You...!

* * *

_(Deep within Slug's ship...)_

Mira raised his head.

Those blank, eerie red eyes focused intently upon the unfolding scene, watching intently as the balding saiyan twitched, his aura sputtering with traces of gold. The power itself seemed to be fighting him, struggling to break free and escape, but stubbornly, the veteran held onto it, wrapping it tight against his body.

And this power had garnered Mira's attention.

"Oh?" Towa arched an eyebrow. "Did he catch your eye, my creation?"

The massive man nodded slowly.

...yes."

* * *

"What the hell was that supposed to be?" Angila mused. "You changed the color of your ki, so what? It doesn't make a difference."

"Huh, yeah." Wings snorted in agreement, preening in his insufferable lisp. "If you're done cryin' over spilt' milk, why don'tcha just surren-

_-der."_

Nappa's haymaker caught him dead in the head, shearing the brute's thick neck from his shoulders in one savage blow. Gore spurted wildly, thick, orange blood stemming from where his head had once been. His body, almost unable to register its sudden demise, stood there for a long moment, teetering on the brink. Then it collapsed with a hollow thud. Nappa barely gave it a second glance. _Green _eyes snapped towards Angila, now stumbling away in disbelief, eyes wide as saucers.

Nappa stormed after him, aura blazing out of control.

"YOU...! I'M GONNA...!

Before he could take another step, the smaller creature from before thrust itself into his path. Nappa scoffed and swatted it away, sending it caroming wildly off the ship's hull. He never saw Medamatcha get back up, his vision remained focused on a single point, nothing else. He

Medamatcha shrieked!

"You fool! My babies are going to love you!"

Without even looking away from his prey, Nappa flicked two fingers in the small warrior's direction.

_**"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"**_

The giant storm roared into existence with a beleagured howl of fury, disintegrating the puny creature before it could so much as twitch. Bones and ash tumbled to the ground in a heap, what little remained of the eerie alien was soon gone and blown away on the wind of the saiyan's sudden power. Behind him, he was vaguely aware of Kakarot calling to him, trying to get his attention, but the words were like a distant buzz against his ears, an animal bleat vacant and forgotten.

There was only vengeance.

"Damn you!" Angila howled, lashing out! It was like striking a brick wall. A moving, angry, FURIOUS brick wall. A wall that reached down and grabbed him by the throat, a massive hand nearly eclipsing his face. A gurgle of startled pain answered him and he squeezed even harder, drawing rivulets of blood down the horned warrior's face.

Forcing the smaller warrior down,

"You...what are you!" Angila cried! "What are you?!"

"You'll pay for what you've done!"

Angila only sputtered, staring past him. Nappa, almost unwilling to lower his guard, dared to look. In that instant, the blue-skinned warrior snapped up a hand-

_"AAAARGH!"_

-and promptly lost it moments later as a kienzan slid neatly between them, bifurcating his hand neatly at the wrist.

...yeah, not dead." a new, familiar voice growled. "But, you're gonna wish I was."

Just like that, his new power flickered and died, tongues of gold sputtering out of his aura.

Black eyes reemerged, just in time to see motion in the crater.

A hand pulled itself over the edge.

...what?"

Nappa balked as Serah bolted upright in and out of the crater with an annoyed grunt, her gi in tatters, scowling. Her bright, vibrant eyes flashed like black pools of flaming oil, burning with rage; an inferno of anger and spite smoldering away on the soldiers before them. Muscles twitched violently, fingers writhing, itching to claw out the one responsible for shooting her. Her once limp body stood straight and proud with all the pride the saiyan race possessed, brimming with renewed strength and agility.

"Gah, I need to invest in some better armor." She muttered, grinning wearily.

One hand reached down, ripping the blue vestment away, exposing the pale lace of a brassier. The young boy rested snugly against her hip, his face dirtied, but otherwise very-much unharmed. Grunting, the saiyaness set him down. Shooing him away with one hand she straightened fully, her eyes turning dangerously blank. She regarded him with some surprise-a mark of approval shining in the black depths of her blazing orbs. Then she stepped forward, scarlet sparks etching themselves into her aura.

"Mind if I cut in?" it was not a request. "I'll give you the one in the ship in exchange."

Nappa jerked away, coloring.

The sudden rush of power had left him feeling invigorated, far stronger than before. But he didn't understand. Where had that brief surge of power come from? He could feel it now, deep inside him, but when he tried to draw it out, this strange new energy resisted, fighting him like a stubborn child. Just drawing upon it exhausted him. And then there was Serah, half-naked...

Those were thoughts he'd rather not think, now!

Angila fumed as the bald warrior stepped back, making way for his new foe.

"What did you say, woman?! You think you can beat me like that?!"

The saiyaness cocked her head.

"Actually, I do have _something_ to say."

"Oh? And what is that?"

Black eyes flashed scarlet.

**_"KAIOKEN!"_**

Angila blinked.

"Kaio wha**-URK!"**

That was all he had time for before a small fist ventilated his stomach in a shower of blue gore.

For a terrifying moment, Angila felt nothing. Nothing at all. There was only a curious sensation of vague emptiness where his bowels must have been. Then came the pain, the cold, agonizing sensation of a frigid breeze chilling his insides. His enemy tore her fist free, ripping her arm away in a shower of azure blood. Crippled, Slug's best warrior sank to his knees, feebly clutching at the gaping hole in his stomach. Vomit fountained free from his lips, freezing as it struck the tundra.

And his enemy stood over him.

She said nothing.

"Please...mercy...

She looked almost sad.

"I don't think I have that, anymore."

Her hand thrust itself before his face, fingers splayed. A thin discus of ki swirled at the edges, growing larger with each passing second.

"No, no, wait!"

A spiral of ki kicked outward, obliterating him in an instant.

"Jeez," Goku remarked, "If this keeps up, I won't even get a chance to fight!"

He got his wish.

_"Hey, wheres Na-_

A sharp crash answered as the hulking warrior hurtled out of the spaceship and into the distance. For a terrifying instant, I feared Slug had done him in, but no, as I gazed closer, I spied the hulking form of Mira tangled up with the larger saiyan; the pair trading blows at a breakneck pace that seemed to place the bald warrior squarely on the defensive.

_"He's all yours guys!"_

I didn't realize what he'd meant until Slug stepped out of the ship.

"Ah," his rough voice grated on my ears, "If you're here to apply for the soldier job, use the side entrance!"

"Sorry," Goku cracked back, "We're already employed!"

I barely heard either of them.

Young.

That was the first thing I realized as I beheld that youthful Namekian face beaming in that bright, purple aura-not the grizzled old coot he should have been. How the hell?! There were no dragonballs to make him young again! My mind scrambled for an answer, and didn't find one...

...until I beheld Towa behind him. She caught my eye and grinned, waving merrily.

"Hello!" she chirped, sounding entirely too happy for my liking, "We meet at last!"

"Bitch." I hissed.

"Pity." Slug sighed in the same instant. "Oh well. I suppose I'll just have to...DESTROY YOU!"

He hit without warning; we didn't even have time to raise our guards.

Goku yelped as a hand closed around his face, slamming him into the ice.

"HEY!"

I spun, only to feel a small hand strike me square in the back.

Urk!

"Don't forget about me, darling." Towa's voice poured into my ear, lips brushing the outer lobe. filling it with venom. "I can't have you ganging up on him now, can I?"

"You know, this'd be kinda hot if you weren't trying to kill me...

"Oh, I'm not." she whispered. "But _he_ is."

And then Slug turned his attention to _me._

I felt a fist slam into my jaw, then a kick catch me in the ribs, then an elbow smash into the back of my neck. Reeling, I tried to fight back, tried to help Goku, but I was completely blind to the superior namek's onslaught. These blows were completely beyond my level; Slug's speed was dizzying, incredible, unattainable. No matter which direction I turned, the assault continued.

What little defense I was able to mount, the bastard blew right through it.

In the space of a few seconds, my entire body was screaming out with pain, a kaleidoscope of agony spiraling ever higher with each second. One thought raged amidst the storm in which I found himself, surfacing as I gazed up into the gleaming red eyes of my oppressor.

_'How the hell is this happening?!'_

* * *

Slug was having the time of his life.

Facing two foes at once, and decimating them!

"Had enough yet?" taunted the super namerk, smashing one particularly powerful knee into the side of the blackette's head, dazing him. The saiyaness gasped in shock and turned to favor her injury, opening herself up to a tremendously powerful right hook_._ It sent her rocketing toward the ground, giving him time to engage the other saiyan; a handful of powerful jabs and kicks soon send him spiraling away as well. Truly, perhaps the bed day of his life, was this very day!

That wish had made him young again!

POWERFUL!

* * *

This...

...was not going well for me.

"KAOIKEN!"

With an explosive roar I blasted forward, mere feet behind Goku, the bright light of our combined auras colliding and splitting violently as we surged toward the tyrant.

THRUCK. The namek dashed forward and drove his fist deep into my gut, doubling me over.

BLAM! An uppercut caught the Goku's jaw with full force, snapping his head back.

CRUNCH. Slug's thrust-kick smashed into my face, crushing capillaries. Distantly, I felt my body lurch, a strangled snarl fleeing from my lips_. Aha!_ I opened my impotently, a swell of saffron gathering at the back of my throat, the scarlet wave ploughing forward into the namek at point blank range.

Slug batted it away as though it were a paper ball.

"Is that it?"

My aggressor shook himself like a wet dog, discarding his helmet.

"As much as I'm enjoying this, I really expected more." the overlord laughed. "Now, tell me where those dragonballs are. After all, I can't get any information out of you if you're dead."

_"Screw you!"_

"As you wish!"

From there the fight devolved into the senseless, knock-down beat-the-shit-out-of-you brawl that comes from getting your asses kicked.

It also ended with my face firmly in the ground, the life choking itself out of me.

"Yesterday you two _might_ have had a chance, but thanks to that witch, you're fighting Lord Slug in his prime!" his fingers tightened around my throat, a vice from which I couldn't escape. And still, the beast pounded at the door, claws scratching-scraping-madly at the gate. No, damnit! Stop! Control! CONTROL IT! Don't give in!

"I'm bored. It's time for you to die!"

I heard something roar, felt the beast shake loose deep within me.

"Godamnit!"

Just like that, it shook loose. A snicker.

"HA."

Slug blinked.

"What?"

* * *

"Ha."

Slug frowned as the girl laughed.

"What's so funny?"

"Heh. Hehehehehehe..." It started out soft and soothing, the cackle of a saiyan gone mad. "...ehehahahahahaHAHAHAHA!" Then, abruptly, it jumped three octaves, leaping into an insane shriek that left would have left a normal man's hair standing on end, his skin rippling in gooseflesh as her voice skipped into an insane shriek. The inane clapping didn't certainly didn't help either, the harsh sound of her palms smacking together with a harsh, continuous pop of sound. It was the strangest thing Slug had ever witnessed, and yet at the same time, the most terrifying sound he'd ever heard, because _she _was the one making it.

"What's so damn FUNNY?!"

Black hair flashed green, her eyes vanishing into nothingness, white sclera regarding him cruelly.

Then she struck.

His moment of inattention cost him most dear.

Slug's eye went wide as his right arm was severed from his body, the limb now falling away from him in a flash. The gloved fingers were wriggling slightly as the nerve endings within them struggled to receive signal from his brain once more, dropping the energy blast that they once held as his hand groped on blindly. The namek lunged backwards, his left arm stretched out towards the wound in an attempt to seize and stifle the injury before he lost too much blood.

'Damn her!"

Glowing eyes glared bloody red daggers at the perpetrator as he retreated, preparing an energy blast.

But she was already gone.

"My word, she's mad...

A shadowy figure buzzed into view, her body blocking the namek, her eyes glaring out coldly from behind the frightening locks of green and emerald. With a frightening hiss she swung her palm backward in a blur, a teal streak of energy rocketing out from the tip of her fingers and incinerating the namek's arm within the dark energy. The ensuing explosion cast his maimer into light for the first time since the attack-exposing a ragged, bedraggled sea of matted green tresses, cheeks curled in devlish delight. Slug ended his sentence with a hiss.

...what got into her?!"

With a savage twist of her hips, Serah wrenched a leg around and kicked him in the face.

_Hard._

The blow felt like taking a tank to the visage; ripping him from his feet and casting him down. Groaning he flopped upright, rubbing at his broken nostrils. This catastrophe was his own undoing. He hadn't put two and two together until this very moment; he'd tormented his prey instead of finishing them off as he should have done! Whether it was out of respect of fear, he knew not. But now it suddenly made sense. Why hadn't he seen it before?!

"Cheeky woman! You wrecked a perfectly good ar-_ARGH!"_

The words stopped in the namek's mouth, the sound replaced with blood, as his aggressor's hand thrust through his stomach.

"And I_," she _growled as she twisted her fist in Slug's gut, _"Am about to blow my load all over your insides_."

"Wha-

"No homo."

With a revolting splatter, Sera ignited her ki and blasted a gaping hole in the namek's stomach, turning away and not sparing a single second to look back at her fallen opponent.

Slung was left on his knees, his arms wrapped feebly around his midsection as his forehead rested pitifully on the ground. He couldn't believe he was going to die like this; bleeding to death on this cold, hollow word , a helpless namek slain by a being so out of his league, walking away coldly as his life slowly ebbed away from him. He had conquered so much in his lifetime; risen through the rank of the weak to become strong, the strongest...strongest...

"W-What are you?!" he cried! "Monster! MONSTER!"

That was his last mistake.

The saiyaness turned back to him, a wicked grin gracing her twisted, beautiful face. She advanced swiftly, her aura igniting once more around her. Before he could think to react she reached down, and took hold of his head, squeezing fiercely. Drawing him close, in a parody of a lover's embrace, she hissed:

"Monster? No...I AM THE DEVIL!"

That was the last sound he heard before those cruel hands tightened around his head...

...and_ pulled._

**A/N: Aaaaaaaaaaand there we go! NAMEK HAPPENS NEXT TIME, I PROMISE! I've already screwed up time, without even trying! And yup, now that Slug is gone, its off to Namek, but the question is thus: thanks to this delay, when will we arrive on Namek! Not to mention Towa and Mira still lurking about, so...**

**...IT'LL BE A GOOD ONE!**

**Remember, this is my veeery first try at a self-insert story*blushes furiously*and I pray to god that I didn't do to badly. I'm a master writer when it comes to Naruto, Bleach, and other works of fiction, but they be just that. FICTION. This is me inserted into this story, bits of my life plumbed out before you, and, well, to be honest, its a tad embarassing. Especially the bit with me getting genderswapped. That was hard as hell to do, considering I am, most certainly, a DUDE and straight as a ruler.**

**But, eh, in this story, I thought I'd shake things up a bit...**

** Naturally, I plan to go more in depth with certain characters than most...including new events and all sorts of chaos as I plunge into the Dragonball Xenoverse! It'll make ya laugh too, I promise! God, I really am going to ruin time as we know it int this one...**

**So, in the Immortal Words of Atlas...**

**...Review, Would You Kindly?**

**...hope ya'll like it! And of course, enjoy a preview for a few chapters down the road! And...it also contains a surprise! It'll make ya laugh, too...**

**(Preview)**

_"Sooooooooo, let me guess. You're from the future. Somebody's kid, right?"_

_"...I'm afraid I can't answer that." the youth fidgeted beneath my gaze, her bright eyes restless. "Um...I know this is sudden, but what's today's date?" I frowned at her, this newcomer, trying to wrap my mind around just who she was. WHAT she was, for that matter. That was certainly the Brave Sword on her back, but the rest of her appearance eluded me. This wasn't Trunks. _

_All dark hair and jaded, painful eyes, her long, jagged hair and eyebrows a bright -dyed, perhaps- white, as though she'd experienced some terrible shock. An equally snow-colored tail -okay, definitely not dyed, then!- twitched restlessly behind her, seeming to almost flinch beneath my incredulous stare. She met my stare evenly, unflinching, and defiant. I'd seen that look before, but my brain somehow failed to make the connection. But where in blazes did the white hair come from? _

_I couldn't think of anyone like that..._

_Who was she, then?_

_Oh, right. She was excepting an answer, wasn't she?_

_"Huh. I think its the seventeenth, why?"_

_"Oh." her small shoulders visibly sagged beneath the jacket. "Good. Then I can definitely say this without affecting the timeline."_

_She stepped forward, and I retreated slightly, frowning._

_"Eh? W-W-W-Wait a second, who's your mother?"_

_She pointed._

_"You."_

_At._

_Me._

**_WHAT._**

_I couldn't help myself; the moment I heard those words, I passed out, right and proper. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I was distantly aware of someone's voice:_

_"That girl pointed a finger and Serah fell down!"_

**R&amp;R! =D**


	7. When on Namek

**A/N: Howdy, ya'll! I've been playing Dragonball Xenoverse as of late, and this idea sort of just came to me in a dream, as it were. I've been suffering through a bad breakup, and I must've eaten something weird, or played WAY too much of this game, because I had a weird dream.**

**Naturally it gave me an idea, and so I made a few tweaks to it. I'm honestly bracing myself for the backlash of even trying this, but in all honesty, I simply couldn't bear to let the idea die.**

**I realized the aspect that truly makes the game great is that its you playing it; after all, you, the player are essentially the one Trunks wished for, in essence. Sure, it might be nice to write what everyone else was writing, but then I realized something; something I haven't done before. So...**

**Again, be sure to play the game yourself or at least familiarize yourself with it...**

**...else you'll be hopelessly lost. I'll leave it to ya'll to guess which aspects of my life written here are fiction and which aren't! Sorry if its short! Expect much more to come! As this is my first self-insert story, PLEASE BE NICE! I worked really, really, REALLY hard on this! And there's also a cute little scene here, too...as well as a major shift in history...**

**...We're veering off course here, folks! Hope you've brought your tissues and popcorn, because it gets really emotional...and bloody as hell. Some TFS jokes in here too...**

**ALSO! **

**Go buy TeamFourStar's Moustache song on Itunes RIGHT NOW! Its awesome, and really got me writing this chapter! And a surprise...**

_"Let me tell you something you already know. The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It's a very mean and nasty place and I don't care how tough you are it will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it. You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard ya hit. It's about how hard you can get it and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done. But ya gotta be willing to take the hits!"_

_~...__?!_

**When on Namek...**

_I know what you're thinking. _

_Hey, that went swimmingly, after all! No problems, no deaths, no casualties, and we all got a nice zenkai at the end. Everybody won. Yeah, sure. Tell yourself that. It was all fine and dandy; I tore Slug's head off, Goku broke the cloud machine tera-freezing the planet, and Nappa got a taste of what it was like to be the good guy for once. Wins all the way around..._

_...if you ignore the aftermath._

_I let the beast out, surrendered all control. _

_It ripped Slug to pieces...and kept going._

_In all honesty I don't remember that last hour or so; it was all a red haze, bitter and furious._

_By the time Goku and Nappa reigned me in, I'd leveled a city block._

_If ever I had needed a reason, a NEED to reign this infernal beast in, then this is it. Its different when you attack those who can actually DEFEND themselves. Those people were probably scared out of their wits before I blasted them into ashes. They never even saw me coming. Talk about your wake-up call, but then again, this is what I deserve for thinking I'd gotten that "thing" under control..._

_...I never was a hero. Monster, demon, devil perhaps, but not a hero. That's Goku's job._

_Now we're hurtling towards Namek at breakneck speed in a spaceship-one I hope to god is SAIYAN proof; because if it ain't then we're as good as dead. All the more reason to learn how to control myself. One tiny hole and aaaaaall the air rushes out. Then we're dead as ducks. Well, ducks in space._

_Heh._

_SPAAAAAAACE!_

_Okay, I've gotten that out of my system. Which brings me back to the problem at hand._

_...but how can I control the beast without BECOMING IT..._

_...or maybe..._

_...just maybe..._

_...that's what I have to do._

* * *

I exhaled softly, reaching deep inside myself.

The beast responded almost immediately, clawing and scrabbling for purchase on my pscyhe. Kill! Destroy! Defenestrate! It wanted nothing more than to maim and mangle all those close to it, and being denied that, it wanted something...else. The sheer savagery of this primal desire -my desire, ugh!- disgusted me, but I shunted it aside, searching for something else. A glimmer of red energy answered and I grasped it firmly, folding it deep inside myself within the darkness of mine mind.

And I spoke.

_"Kaioken."_

My ki soared! I urged it on higher, testing my limits...!

_Let me out._

And there it was.

The moment my ki pushed past a certain threshold, the Beast began to stir, scratching at the door. I felt the saiyan instincts of my body surge up around me, the urge to fight growing every second, increasing with my ki. In the past, I'd been little more a thrall to those whims, unable to suppress them as I had with Slug. It wanted freedom. Release. Now, I ignored it.

This time.

_Let me out!_

Initially, when Goku had suggested meditating I'd scoffed at it. Now I saw the wisdom of his words. Earth's greatest hero might be a bit of a dunce when it came to common life-but in terms of battle he was an absolute genius. Meditation. Oh, the irony. It stood to reason that sitting still-the one thing I despised more than anything else-would be the answer I'd needed. We'd spent weeks in space now, the three of us, Me, Goku, and of course, Nappa, but even with this newfound calm, I still couldn't quite get a handle on the power raging inside me.

It also made me wonder; gave me time to think.

What was I?

Was I like Broly?

Was I something else?

A beast, a monster, some gibbering abomination who lived only to destroy?

_Let. Me. Out._

Grunting, I shunted the blood rage aside once more.

Everything I'd ever read or researched led me to believe that the Legendary Super Saiyan was a once-in-a-millenia sort of event. That was Broly. Not me. It couldn't be me. Right? But I'd seen myself in my mind's eye, seen that beast emerge, and I knew it was no Super Saiyan. The green hair. White eyes. The constant rise of my ki, the blinding desire to destroy everything around me...it frightened and excited me all at once. Nappa had once told me not to stress over this, to just find a focus for my instincts.

Perhaps that was the answer.

I need to learn to embrace this. Own it. Accept what I am.

Maybe then I could finally control my actions.

Tentatively, I reached down, deep inside myself, and grasped the power that loathed me so.

Nothing happened as I cradled that strange, green energy in my mind's eye.

A thorn of pride pricked at me and held me back.

Maybe...maybe then...I could-

_YOW!_

Somewhere deep inside, I felt it break. The dam cracked, just a little, but enough. Power came flooding forth, staining my eyes a deep, desperate teal beneath closed the lids. Unexpected, newfound strength flooded my aching muscles all at once, powering me up and out of my crouch with all the force of a small explosion. Distantly, I felt the floor dent beneath the force of my leap-of my ki-but I didn't care. My mind had already locked onto a new target, the beast within fixating itself on a single, solitary opponent; because fightning

In this, at least, we were in agreement. Didn't make it any less pleasant.

_LET! ME! OUT!_

I gritted my teeth as the pain came.

This wasn't as simple as flicking a switch; the power hated me, and it _didn't_ like being told what to do-especially now that I was actively calling upon it. The Beast, as I'd come to call it, despised me. It wanted out on its terms, not mine, and it raged against the thin leash that held it. But it came regardless, kicking and screaming and shrieking, even as I suppressed the transformation. Ever try riding a bull without the reins? That, dear reader, was a picnic compared to this.

But finally...FINALLY...

_"There...!"_

My eyes snapped open.

**_"KAIOKEN-_**

* * *

_**-TIMES TWENTY!"**_

Goku yelped painfully as a crimson-cad arm powered through his guard; plowing past his defenses and decking him in the schnoz. The blow came completely out of nowhere-one moment he'd been practicing a kata, an' the next, he found himself under attack. A few days ago, an assault like that would have floored him, broken three ribs and required a Senzu Bean. Today, he simply staggered back, wiped a thin line of blood away from his mouth and stood up, grinning.

...suffice it to say he'd come a long way. Much, MUCH, further than he would have had he say, ventured into space alone. He felt like he could taken on a hundred Vegeta's now!

There was just something about having a sparring partner-or in this case, two-that brought out the best in you.

Doctor Briefs had been every bit as good for his word as he'd promised; this was the perfect place to train. Large, wide, expansive, and with its own gravity generator to boot, it was a saiyan's dream come true. All their amenities satisfed, everything they could ever want. Though one did wonder if there would be enough food to last three pure-blooded saiyans...

Regardless, every second brought them closer to Namek, and, to King Kai's disgruntlement, Frieza. Nappa was still a little jittery about the idea of facing down the icy tyrant, but Goku couldn't help himself. He was sooo excited!

Even more than he was now!

Thankfully such outbursts of violence were common with Serah, and he immediately transitioned into a proper defense against the sudden onslaught.

For all of five seconds.

Leading with his left, the pure-hearted saiyan found himself abruptly and viciously blocked, a clenched fist smacking against an upturned elbow. _Wha...? Where did that come from? Even with her maximum Kaioken, she wasn't this strong before! I'm actually kinda happy!_ Thus stymied, but strangely excited, he flared his own aura, crimson overtaking white. His opponent waited patiently as he powered up, watching as he flared his ki to a comfortable increase of fifteen times the normal power.

...what, you're done already?" Serah tilted her head, appraising him quizzically. "I can still go a little higher, you know."

Goku growled, reaching deeper.

"Not yet! Times...SEVENTEEN!"

Laughter greeted him. "There we go! Give me all you've got!"

His answer caught her square on the cheek, snapping her head back. Goku permitted himself a small, satisfied smirk as the dack of his power-swollen fish smashed into her face. A shudder passed through the saiyaness and for a moment, he was afraid he'd actually paralyzed her-no. That twitch wasn't from pain of any sort.

Because she was laughing.

Serah lowered her gaze, grinning, _giggling_, and he saw the beast within.

"Is that it?"

"Oh, crap."

Nappa laughed at his plight. "Careful, Kakarot! She bites!"

Serah did, in fact, choose that moment to bite his hand.

CHOMP!

"OW! No kidding!"

"Eyes up, blockhead!"

"YIPE!"

Flowing seamlessly, she lashed out with blinding speed and slammed a kick into his torso, cracking a rib. Grimacing, he vaulted away, retreating as a hammer fist slammed down towards his head. Narrowly blocking the savage overhand he found himself spun about, blindsided by her tail-how could she hit so hard with that?!-the furry appendage momentarily wrapping around his eyes and blinding him.

"Hey, no fair!" He cried, warding off a roundhouse kick and lashing out with one of his own.

"All's fair in love and war, Goku!"

On the fifth, however, he found his hand caught. His arm throbbed painfully and he hopped away, hissing in pain as he clutched his injured fist. One-hundred times gravity meant next to nothing to him now and even less to his opponent, but, it slowed him by a fraction of a second, and that was all it took for an open palm to smash into his unprotected stomach, folding him over. An elbow to the back of the head put him down for good, his face cracking violently against the floor.

Earth's mightiest warrior rose with a wheeze, gasping for air.

"Alright...that kinda hurt...

"..."

Wordlessly, she pounced!

His opponent's style remained wild and undpredictable, relentless as ever.

Alternating between long-armed clawed swipes of the Namek Demon martial arts and the short, staccato bursts of Tien's Crane Style, she never seemed to stay still, even for a moment. _Attack, attack, attack!_ There was no concept of defense, she just took anything he dished out and kept coming. Like a berserker. He even recognized a bit of Vegeta in her form, the way she constantly closed the distance, kept after him with small shots of ki. She adapted. Learned. Improved.

"Hey! How about a handicap?" he groaned, massaging his broken nose after she struck again. "Can't you give me a moment here?!"

Serah beamed suddenly at that, almost angelically.

_"Shoryuken."_

"Oh, thanks-GAH!"

Had he known of Street Fighter, Son Goku would've been mightily embarrassed in that instant; because her knuckles rose up beneath his chin, lurching his head violently upright. Even as he rose, a hand closed around his ankle and yanked him back down, a second blow smacking into his gut with devastating force, leading into a third, and finally a fourth that smacked him back into the floor of the ship. His cracked rib gave one, final yelp of protest before snapping completely.

"Owowowowow! Alright, alright! Nappa! Tag in!"

"Don't think so! C-C-Combo!" Serah crowed, launching a kiai and snapping the larger saiyan down when he tried to intervene.

And then, suddenly, just like that, Son Goku realized his face was kissing the cool, metal deck.

When did _that_ happen?

"Urk...okay...where...

Leading with his left foot, the battered saiyan pushed himself upright. All the world spun merrily around him, like some sort of convoluted merry-go-round. Distantly, he thought he detected the telltale sound of Instant Transmission as Serah had taken to calling it, but with his ears ringing like this, he wasn't rightly sure. Oh, and why was everything so BRIGHT-

...ME...

Caught totally unawares, he never heard the chant until it was too late. Never saw the light until it snapped into focus at his flank. Slowly, belatedly, he turned. A flash of red and blue interposed itself over his vision; he realized too late what he was looking at, his combat-addled brain struggling to make his battered body move-

...HA!"

Serah's Kamehameha cannoned into him from below as she reappeared from a burst of Instant Transmission, bowling him head over heels. By comparison, the blast was far weaker than it should have been; instead of tearing him apart and ventilating the ship, it simply knocked poor Goku out of the fight completely; sending him tumbling him over onto his back. Out cold and slightly singed, he never noticed the Senzu bean that she forced down his throat, her hand closing around his jaw, forcing him to swallow.

Nappa rang an imaginary bell, laughing.

"Ding! Alright, he's done for the day." Rising, the experienced warrior coiled his tail about his waist and raised his guard. "My turn now."

Serah did a little dance, bouncing on the balls of her feet and feigning swift jabs at him. One-two. Punch. One-two. Like a boxer, almost, Nappa thought. Strange human sport, but he could see where she'd gotten the idea of the swift jabs and rapid-fire kicks from. Spirits though, where did she get all of that energy? Even now the ruby-red aura of her kaioken burned brightly around Serah, her body shining like a star.

He wasn't that much stronger than poor Kakarot, and she'd floored him without breaking a sweat!

"Give me all you got, old timer." she beamed, black eyes glinting like dark diamonds.

Nappa colored mightily.

"Hey! I'm not that old!"

"I'm sorry, what was that, gramps?" came the cheeky grin.

"Okay, now that was just _rude. **KAIOKEN!"**_

He'd picked up the Kaioken quite handily-it might have something to do with his large, bulky body-and leveled out at a comfortable five times increases. It just came naturally to him. Serah swore up and down that she would teach the rest of the Z-Fighters this technique but for now, the veteran warrior found himself taking a bit of pride in mastering the technique so swiftly.

"So...no handicap?" he asked, stretching.

"Where's the fun in that?!"

Serah, clad in the crackling aura of her own Kaioken, descended on him mercilessly.

And then she froze.

* * *

_**"They'e dying, you know."**_

'What?!'

Towa's voice stabbed into my mind like a burning iron, turning my graceful dive into a stuttering stumble that left me wide open. I barely even felt it when Nappa took advantage; his large fist crashing into my face and sending me stumbling away. Still, nothing. I baely

_**"Every second you play at being a human, your friends are dying."**_ she hummed._** "What are you waiting for? You can sense them, can't you? Let the beast out, show me that wonderful power...**_

_'The hell did you do?!'_

_**"Think about it."**_

And then, just like that, she was gone.

* * *

"I think I finally figured it out."

"Figured what out?" Nappa felt a block of ice lodge itself into his gut as Serah picked herself back up, staring blankly into space.

"Its from the heart. All this time I've been trying to reign the beast in, keep it from going berserk. What I need is a target. A focus. Goal. Like..._**him!"**_ She grunted and flared her aura, fleck of crimson staining her black irises.

"Him?"

"Frieza! Why didn't I think of this before?! If Towa want to play dirty, then fine! WE'LL PLAY DIRTY!"

"Towa?" Wait, maybe you shoudn't-

"No! I've had it!" Her eyes went teal. "I've...had...ENOUGH!"

And then she vanished.

Nappa blinked.

"Uh...was she supposed to do that?"

* * *

In hindsight, using instant transmission to land on a planet I'd_ never been to before _wasn't exactly a wise decision on my part.

Rushing off on my own with only three Senzu beans? Slightly less so.

I had no idea where I was going to land, or even if I was going to land at all. It was a decision made in haste and one too late to retract. By the time I understood thus, even as my mind processed the horrible fact that he might end up _anywhere_ on Planet Namek, perhaps in the middle of a fray itself, I opened my eyes and...

...exhaled in surprise.

I'd locked onto the first, non-evil ki I could find...

...and wound up here.

An ominous blackness stretched out before me in every direction, broken only by intermittent bits of light. In fact, the inner room was a great deal _brighter,_ than I'd expected it to be. Larger, too. But not quite was large as the giant namek seated in the center of the room. Did I mention he was giant?

Oh, hell.

...who goes there?" His gravelly voice rumbled out at me, lie a pair of great boulders scraping together. "Have you come to end an old man's life?"

"Um...nope." I offered lamely.

Silence draped itself over me like a wet blanket and my mind processed the situation slowly.

_Guru._

I found myself face to face with the infamous namek of old, sitting upon a large throne. It was _ his_ energy I'd latched onto; it was weak and weary, as if he clung to life through tenacity alone. His great bloated frame heaved for breath a moment longer before he turned his head toward me. Slitted eyes contemplated me for an idle moment before turning back toward the ceiling.

"Great evil has come to Namek," The Great Namek began, as though he himself was somehow sensing my own inner turmoil. "Frieza and his wicked men. Because of them, I sense my children are in grave-" He coughed harshly, a spasm rocking his mighty frame. "It seems they will stop at nothing until they have gathered all seven dragon balls. To we namek's the dragon balls symbolize wisdom and power." He snorted. "But this Frieza, he sees them only as a tool to serve his greed."

"Yeah, no kidding." I muttered.

"I see." His eyes drifted toward me in silent judgement; it felt as though he were weighing the consequences of my actions-condemning me for my every past mistake. "You have come here not as an invader, like many others, but rather, to prevent a catastrophe, as I have foreseen. However, I sense great darkness within you."

"Look," Despite my best efforts, I felt my face begin to burn. "I'm no saint, if that's what you're asking. But I-

"Yet there is also light," he continued, interrupting. "You are not one of Frieza's men, as I had feared. Tell me then, why are you here?"

"To help my friends."

"Can you?"

I couldn't help but bristle beneath the elder namek's stare. The Beast roared at me to kill, but I shoved it into a corner, fuming.

"I don't know if I'm strong enough to take everything on my own, but," When I spoke, it was with a venom that silenced the room. "I _will_ make Frieza regret what he's done."

"Your sentiment is appreciated, but revenge is not the answer." Guru's gaze drifted toward the ceiling, as though he might somehow divine wisdom from the sloped roof hanging above our heads. "You too desire to use the balls for your own purposes, do you not?"

Urk.

Yes, it _had _occurred to me that I might be able to use them to reverse my plight, assuming they even could. After all, I really didn't want to be trapped in this body any longer than I had to. But any thought of selfishly stealing them for my own selfish gain was overridden by the plight before me.

"Forgive me for being blunt, Guru-san, but that's not exactly why I came here." I solemnly pressed a hand to my chest, fingers bunching against the armored shit in a furtive effort to control my rising temper. "I...argh, look its kinda complicated, alright?! I don't have time to explain, but I need you to trust me!"

"Trust? Trust is not something so easily given."

"I know, but I'm asking anyway."

Guru cut his eyes at me.

"And?" His head leaned forward a fraction of an inch. "What can you possibly do?"

"I can kick their asses, that's what!" I retorted, sullenly cheeks puffing. "I might even be able to give Frieza a hard time. Anything's better than standing around and doing nothing!"

Guru stared at me for a long hard moment. Then he sighed.

"Please, come closer and we will solve this puzzle."

"Excuse me?"

Once more he beckoned me closer and I reluctantly complied, feeling unworthy.

I had nothing to fear from a namek, much less a dying one, even so, I felt...humbled, somehow. I would honor the alien's request.

"Will you?" he replied in a voice of sudden steel. Turning towards me, he pinioned me on his gaze. "Then you will hold still." he lifted his hand as if in blessing, but then reached out to lay his palm on my forehead and lace his large fingers through the thick mane of my hair. Pain poured through his touch. It roared into me, a flood of lava, hot and scalding.

The namekian's mind entered my own like a thief through a window, cautiously. My body did not welcome this thief. Nor did the Beast. It took all I had not to send the alien screaming out of the well of my soul and into gibbering madness. I willed myself to be still as Guru sifted through my memories, turned over my every action of kindness and temerity in hand, contemplating each one as master would his craft. All the while, I could only stand there, still as a statue. I didn't see what he saw.

Instead, my mind was flung adrift, hurled into the void.

It was a savage disconnect; one moment I stood there, the next, I was gone, staring down at my body. What? What, what, what? That didn't make any sense! _This _didn't make any sense! Why was it happening?! Alas, even that confusion, and the the silence didn't last for long.

_"You think you can defeat me?!"_

_"This...is true perfection!"_

_"I'll destroy everything!"_

_"I AM LEGEND!"_

_"BUU!"_

And more.

And there, at the end of it all I saw myself-or at least, someone who I believed to be myself-weeping, standing on a field of broken bodies as lightning flashed overhead. Cradling someone. Beyond that it was all a blur; my world fell apart and everything blurred together in a sea of blood and madness and LAUGHTER and ohgodstopstopstopmakeitstopICANT-

_**"GET OUT!"**_

When I screamed this time, the Beast screamed with me. A green spark arched between us, spitting its displeasure, severing the tenuous connection between me and the elder namek.

**"!"**

Guru's hand broke from my forehead, and he lurched back, catching a slight breath.

"The things you have done...!" he choked out. "Who...who or what are you?!"

I frowned.

"I'm not proud of some of them. As to who I am...I'm just a person who got unlucky. Nothing special."

Guru glanced toward me and drew a deep breath, gradually becoming himself once again.

"I have seen your mind. Your heart, though your heart may no longer pure, your intentions are true. Your bravery and loyalty to your friends is beyond question. You have proven yourself worthy of my respect, saiyan. I only hope there's still time for you to make your wish." he rasped out.

"At this point, my only concern is Frieza."

"Thank you." Guru sighed. You do my people a great service, young one."

I flushed.

"I-It's what anyone would do."

"Indeed, you are brave. And there is much strength in you. Even more than you yet realize. For much of it is still sleeping."

I blinked.

"Come again?"

"Allow me to awaken this power."

"My...what?"

I willed myself to be still as the elder laid a trembling hand upon his head for the second time. Memories long since buried threatened to surface once more, threatened to overwhelm me. I furiously sueppresed each of them, inwardly incredulous at Guru's revelation. Sleeping power? The only thing I had sleeping within me was an undying desire for carnage. I certainly didn't have any latent abilities, beyond what had been taught to me by his my mentors. The mere notion of having anymore power at this point was so absurd as to be ludicrous...

"Really, I'm already all tapped out-

"Silence." Guru hushed me. "Allow me to concentrate."

"Alright...

Before he could finish, I felt it.

_Ba-dump._

I stole a glance down at myself. At my hands. A bright, green aura blazed around me, burnishing my skin a sinister shade of verdant jade. I flexed my arms, momentarily amazed at the sudden increase, not just in sheer speed or agility, but strength as well. Power! Power like I'd never felt before! I executed a quick series of punches in the air, surprised by my own speed. It was...impressive to say the least. Hell, I was half-tempted just to transform and see what the inrcease would be like. It was only my own wariness that restrained me.

"Oi!" I yelped in surprise. "That's...That's a lot of power!"

Guru collapsed, gasping softly.

"It is done. There is hope for your yet, child. I sense you will bring much help against the coming darkness. Please, would you grant me this one favor?" I listened attentively. "Defeat him. Destroy Frieza. "I've entrusted this to you, hero. Our fate, along with the fate of this entire planet, now rests in your hands...saiyan."

I sweatdropped.

_'R-Right.'_

Inwardly, though, I felt a touch of pride. Hero. I hadn't allowed myself to consider that in a long while. Likely the namekian knew of this only because he'd read my mind, but the pride was there nonetheless. _That's right,_ pride swelled within my chest, _I was Never a Hero. But that doesn't mean I can't do right by those who are important to me..._

Turning his attention outward, and for the first time in many years, I bowed.

"I won't forget this kindness, Guru."

I stretched my senses outward, searchingly.

_'There! It's fading fast!'_

* * *

_Vegeta was, all things considered, having a bad day._

A very, very, VERY bad day.

Having been beaten within an inch of his life by someone he considered to be little more than a glorified wrestler, he found himself lingering on the verge of death. Ordinarily, this would have been a good thing. He could come back from this, stronger and greater than ever. If he survived. Which was looking less and less unlikely. One good shove would cast him through and then that would the end of it. His dreams of vengeance against Frieza, all of it would be for naught...

"Well," Recoome grinned, raising an arm over his battered form, "Guess 'dis is it! G'night, prince!"

And his troubles hadn't even started there!

Forced into an alliance that had, thus far, done nothing more than cause him immense pain, _forced_, to watch as Kakarot's brat and that pathetic earthling got themselves beaten to a pulp! Forced to look like an absolute fool by these...these...

_"Minemineminemine..._

Vegeta frowned, spitting blood. What was those noise?

"What in the hell...

_...mineminemineminemine..._

Yes, he was certain it was growing louder, a rising chant thrumming in his ears like an endlessly incessant animal bleat. What was that? What even _was _that? It sounded a good deal like that impertinent Saiyan wench, but no, even _she _didn't possesses a power level of this magnitude. Whatever it was it seemed to be growing larger, faster...louder...

_...minemineminemineminemine..._

A wall of ki plowed into Recoome, staggering him backwards like a drunken braggart before he could administer the final blow. The hulking berserker barely had time to register the kiai before a teal form cannoned into him, flattening him against the grass ribs and breaking bone. A pair of bright boots filled his vision, lit as though from within by green ki.

**_"MINE!"_**

...you have got to be kidding."

Of all the people, of all the beings in the universe, why did fate despise him so?!

...I hate you. So much right now."

"Feeling's mutual." came a soft, husky voice. "But I'm the only one allowed to kill you."

Gohan stuttered in disbelief.

"Sis?"

If Serah noticed the brat, she did little to show it. Instead she turned, reached into her sash, and withdrew what looked like a bean. Vegeta had just enough time to balk before she rounded on him, moving with startling speed and agility.

"Senzu bean!"

Vegeta twitched as she spun and unceremoniously shoved one of those foul things in his mouth. Gah! Bland and tasteless! Still, he chewed, and to his disbelief, within moments of swallowing, his wounds vanished! As if they had never even existed! Newfound strength coursed through him, invigorating him, filling his ki to the brim with overflowing might...!

"You...what did you do?!"

Again, the blasted wench ignored him!

"Alright, who in the hell...?"

Five figures synced up as one, striking flamboyant poses. Hery eye twitched. Out of all the enemies in the DBZ universe, these ones had a peculiar way of sticking in memory, if only for sheer hilarity.

"You heard her, men! WHO ARE WE?!"

"Recoome!"

"Jeice!"

"Burter!"

"Captain Ginyu!" A pause. "Ah, its just not the same without-

Before they could finish she threw my arms out to the sides and roared. "ORAH!" A savage kia spread outward, flattening the ground for miles in every direction, forcing the elite squad to leap away or be crushed by the sheer force of her ki. Blazing green eyes spun, tracking the movement, fixating upon the nearest member of the Ginyu Force.

_Recoome._

"I'll give you once chance." it was a hiss, a sibilant sound as she turned to face him. "Leave now, or die."

"Idiot!" Vegeta croaked! "Don't offer them mercy! They'll give you none of the same!"

"Ha!" the gap-toothed warrior grinned on agreement, lisping slightly. "Yeah, right! Yer going down!"

Lunging forward, he struck with all his might!

Serah didn't flinch.

Her face turned aside ever so slightly against his punch, nothing more.

"You lot never learn. I'm sick of it. So...sick...of...IT!"

...whuh?!"

Then she calmly reached up and snapped Recoome's arm off at the elbow.

Yowling, the brute stumbled back, clutching at the ragged stump that had once been his limb. Despite all the power granted to him by Towa, all the strength that he assumed was his own, the large man blubbered like a newborn, gasping and choking and sputtering as the saiyaness towered over him.

A savage kick slammed into his midsection, toppling him, but his moans did not abate.

"Let me tell you something you already know," she growled, ki flaring, rising over his screams. "The world ain't all sunshine and rainbows. It's a very mean and nasty place!" Her hair lofted upright, swaying in an unseen breeze. "And I don't care how tough you say or think you are, it will_ beat you to your knees and keep you there_ permanently if you let it." Green eyes regarded them fiercely, sparks etching into her aura, "You, me, or nobody is gonna hit as hard as life. But it ain't about how hard ya hit! HA!"

With a violent explosion, the ground cratered anew, jagged boulders rising around her. "It's about how hard you can get it and keep moving forward!" her voice was a roar, struggling to make itself heard over the sheer force of her power! "How much you can _take_ and keep moving forward. That's how winning is done. But ya gotta be willing to take the hits! You, you lot!" a finger thrust forward, jerking at Ginyu and his men! "You don't know anything about taking hits! BUT YOU WILL! Hrrrrrrrrk...

Her fists tightened at her sides, eyes going white.

"Eh?" Ginyu blinked, frowning as his scouter began to beep, the ground itself trembling underfoot. "What in the worl-

...krrrrrrrrr...

"No!" he cried, much to Vegeta's satisfaction, "No, her power can't be that hi-

**"...rrrrrrrrraaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!"**

With a final, tearing scream, the last of her restraints shattered, and bright green light seemed to emanate from deep within the saiyaness, shining inside her very soul. Her mouth opened and closed as her screams trailed away, the fierce radiance shining from her eyes and mouth as though lit within. The ki built to unbearable brightness, until it seemed too much for her body to contain, and Serah seemed to simply blow apart from the inside out, energy leaping from her body in all directions.

Gohan yelped, throwing up an arm as though he'd been struck. "Whoa! Did she just kill herself?!"

"No, brat," Vegeta swallowed thickly, "Look closer. There's something inside...I can still sense her...

The two wounded warriors stared deep into the light as it began to fade...

...and

Serah now stood higher than any of them, her once slim form almost amazonian by comparison, rippling and contorting up and down her body. She wasn't exactly as ripped as Nappa himself, but rather, Serah was built, every aspect of her new power seemed to permeate her muscles, lending to this new strength. Her skin had turned an almost ghostly pale pallor, her once tan flesh nearly alabaster by comparison. Her hair was standing up even further now, bearing a sickly neon green hue. A violent jade aura burned around her, dwarfing all others.

"Now," when she spoke, her words were a snarl, "You will die."

This close, her ki burned his very eyes, searing them like the suns themselves.

"She...She really is...the Legendary...

Blank white eyes regarded them coldly, devoid of emotion.

Then she grinned.

"I am Death.. I am the Devil...

Ginyu retreated, backpedalling madly, all confidence and bluster stripped away.

"What? No way?! These are the latest scouters! They top out at five hundred thousand! What are you?!"

Serah's only response was a bestial howl.

_...I AM THE LEGENDARY SUPER SAIYAN!"_

**A/N: Aaaaaaaaaaand there we go! FRIEZA HAPPENS NEXT TIME, I PROMISE! I've already screwed up time, without even trying! And yup, now that Slug is gone, its off to Namek, but the question is thus: thanks to this delay, when will we arrive on Namek! Not to mention Towa and Mira still lurking about, so...**

**...IT'LL BE A GOOD ONE!**

**Remember, this is my veeery first try at a self-insert story*blushes furiously*and I pray to god that I didn't do to badly. I'm a master writer when it comes to Naruto, Bleach, and other works of fiction, but they be just that. FICTION. This is me inserted into this story, bits of my life plumbed out before you, and, well, to be honest, its a tad embarassing. Especially the bit with me getting genderswapped. That was hard as hell to do, considering I am, most certainly, a DUDE and straight as a ruler.**

**But, eh, in this story, I thought I'd shake things up a bit...**

** Naturally, I plan to go more in depth with certain characters than most...including new events and all sorts of chaos as I plunge into the Dragonball Xenoverse! It'll make ya laugh too, I promise! God, I really am going to ruin time as we know it int this one...**

**So, in the Immortal Words of Atlas...**

**...Review, Would You Kindly?**

**R&amp;R! =D**


	8. Legendary

**A/N: I TAKE NO CREDIT FOR TFS QUOTES AND MATERIAL WITHIN! **

**I'm back bitches!**** AND I'VE SEEN THE NEWS FOR XENOVERSE 2! Alright ladies and gentlemen, I'm alive! I've been better given all the problems I've been going through but I'm still breathing. Still kicking. I've been on an update craze as of late as I'm sure you all noticed; its just my way of coping with life and my new job at the moment.**

**Also, I've been getting a LOT of flames as of late, from DoomMarine54 and others anonymous guest reviewers. Mean and cowardly, much? I'm not even going to post the reviews up here, now that I've deleted them. Trust me, you don't want to see the vicious, vile insults and threats they've made against my person. They are...unpleasant to say the least.**

**But enough about me! OFF WE GO Onto the next chapter of...**

**...NEVER A HERO~!**

**AND SOMEONE GOES FULL CRAZY IN THIS CHAPTER~! Sorry if its short, but hey, I'm back for good! I fear not the flames of the FLAMERS!**

_...that almost tickled._

_"Oh, fuck me!"_

_~?_

**Legendary**

_(Last Time, on Never a Hero...!)_

_Captain Ginyu was looking at a monster._

_Serah now stood higher than any of them, her once slim form almost amazonian by comparison, rippling and contorting up and down her body. She wasn't exactly as ripped as Nappa himself, but rather, Serah was built, every aspect of her new power seemed to permeate her muscles, lending to this new strength. Her skin had turned an almost ghostly pale pallor, her once tan flesh nearly alabaster by comparison. Her hair was standing up even further now, bearing a sickly neon green hue. A violent jade aura burned around her, dwarfing all others, burning, burning UNTIL-_

_Bzzt!_

_"What?!" Ginyu started as his scouter inexplicably uttered a keening whine and shattered against his face. "No way! These are the latest models! They top out at five hundred thousand! What are you?!"_

_Blank white eyes regarded them coldly, utterly devoid of emotion._

_Then she grinned._

_"I am Death...I am the Devil..._

_Knuckles clenched at her sides, she hurled her ki out in every direction._

_...I AM THE LEGENDARY SUPER SAIYAN!"_

* * *

(...)

* * *

The whole of Namek waited for its world to end.

For a fleeting heartbeat no one moved. No one breathed. None even dared to so much as blink, lest they provoke the monster in their midst. All were transfixed by the sight of the blazing green goddess standing before them, rooted, by the sheer presence of the towering saiyaness. For her part, the Legendary Super Saiyan didn't deign to acknowledge their presence; she was too busy staring intently at the clear, green sky, as though doing so would somehow bring her the horizon. She seemed almost...peaceful.

Vegeta wasn't deceived.

He saw her small smile and knew it for what it was; indeed, the crazed grin on the young woman's face turned the prince's very blood to ice in his veins. This form was new to him, yet familiar. Different...but, the same. He'd glimpsed it before back on Earth. Wild eyes, that burning golden aura, tinged with green. But this...whatever it was, proved alien to his senses. It was as if she had shed her skin and emerged from a cocoon before his. This was the power in its purest form, unfettered by the petty shackles of morality and restraint that had been holding it back. She had either lost her mind, or willingly dipped into that vast, reservoir of power in an icy rage.

He wasn't sure which terrified him more.

Still, no one moved. None dared.

Then Jeice lost his cool.

_"Crusher Ball!"_

The scarlet sphere ignited against the red alien's palm and surged forward in the next instant, streaking towards the Super Saiyan's back. This at last, shocked the remaining members of the Ginyu Force into action, if only to fling themselves away from the saiyaness and the falling comet descending upon her.

_Thud._

Serah caught the blast in her off hand without so much as a backwards glance. Then she raised her arm. Blank eyes regarded it for a long moment, the white sheets of her eyes showing nothing. Reflecting nothing. Then she turned and still cradling the once crimson ball of energy, hurled it back at its master, the once rosy sphere now bursting with emerald light. Jeice was lucky; in that his death was almost instantaneous. He barely had time to see the swelling blast encompass his vision, scarce enough to utter:

_"Clever girl."_

And he was gone, swallowed whole by the raging blast, smashed to atoms. When the smoke cleared, all that remained were ashes, fluttering on the breeze. Serah straightened slowly from her throw, arm still extended from her throw. Then she started walking. Her booted feet crunched carelessly over the the scorched grass as she stormed forward at the remaining members of Frieza's elite squad. Recoome was the next to die. Serah didn't even look at him; she simply annihilated the beaten bruiser with her aura as she strode past, destroying his body without a thought. It made his last trouncing like an insipid slap fight.

A slender finger rose, indicating Burter.

"You." her voice was hoarse from screaming, vibrating with menace. "You're next."

The Blue Hurricane froze, his already pallid skin turning ghost white.

"What's wrong? Are you going to stand there all day?"

"Sh-Shut up! I'm the fastest in the universe!"

_"Right."_

Shrieking, the massive, snake-like alien vanished in a streak of blue ki, and the saiyaness snapped after him with a snarl, disappearing from his line of sight. Vegeta barely saw either of them move, but he certainly _felt_ what came after. _THUUUM!_ What power! The very sky itself seemed to shake apart with a dull roar, whether fro the saiyaness or the Ginyu's, he knew not. He soon had his answer. Thunderous shockwaves split the sky for merely a heartbeat longer, then cut off abruptly.

_Whap!_

Burter's broken body broke ground a moment later, his neck twisted savagely at an impossible angle. Somehow he was still alive, still moving, still twitching despite the grievous injury he'd been dealt. That is, he was, until Serah crashed atop him with a dull crunch, driving her pointed boot home into the alien's head. The shower of blue blood that followed left no doubt as to the veracity as of the Super Saiyan's strength.

"Burter!" Ginyu swallowed thickly. "M-My men...they're all gone...

White eyes found his.

_"You're next."_

The Captain stumbled backwards from the towering monstrosity, sweating buckets. No chance. He had no chance against a monster like this! His only option was to switch bodies. Even then he doubted he'd have more than a single shot; anything less and this monster-no, this devil!-would be on him before he could react. There would be no second chances...he had to make this count! Gasping, the horned alien thrust his arms out at either side and began gathering his energy. The saiyaness paused briefly, confused. Yes! There it was! His chance!

"Change-

_**"DENIED!"**_

A slim hand cracked across his visage, shattering his nose in a spray of purple viscera and driving him to the dirt. Scrambling upright, Ginyu struggled to stand-

Too late.

A smiling shadow fell over him, dark and vicious.

"Which do you value more?" came the growl. "Your arms? Or your legs?"

"N-No!" he choked out, stumbling! "Stay away! Stay awaaaaaa_aaaaaaaaaaaargh!_

The Saiyaness set into Ginyu then and at this, Vegeta finally felt his resolve crumble.

In the end, unable to watch the dismemberment, the prince forced himself to look away.

All he heard was the maddening laughter.

**_"Weak, weak, WEAK! WHY ARE YOU ALL SO WEAK?!"_**

* * *

_(...)_

* * *

Towa was on the verge of sheer euphoria.

She'd watched from afar, enraptured as Serah's temper slipped its leash. She had watched, near giddy with delight as the saiyaness transformed, the full of her power ushering her to the very edge of her sanity. This. It was almost too good to be true. This was all she'd wanted and more, what she'd waited, longed for! With an energy like that under her control, none would ever dare to challenge her again!

She _wanted _it.

Her.

What might it be like to have a partner like that? A being who knew no equal?

She was nearly there.

"Yes, that's the way...

She just needed another push.

Thankfully, her latest minion was _more_ than capable of doing just that.

It had been pitifully easy to bring him here; she'd scarcely needed any magic to begin with. A whispered word here, a promise of immortality there, that was all it took to bring him here. Truly gullible creatures of habit, these frost demons were. What did it matter if he'd never before set foot on Namek, if he was never meant to? He was here _now_, her willing slave, blissfully unaware of the hold she had on him. He would act as his race had always acted when they were presented with might-he would either try to claim it for himself, or have it destroyed.

And if in doing so they polluted the timeline still further and _she_ harnessed still more energy, who was she to complain?

Regardless of the outcome, she would win the day.

The board was set, her pieces in place.

Her move had just been made.

Now, she had only to wait.

* * *

_(...)_

* * *

"Did you feel that?"

Nappa groaned, lying prone on the floor of the ship.

"Don't say it, Kakarot."

"But-

Nappa growled.

"Do. Not. Say. It."

Too little, too late.

"She's even stronger than the two of us put together!"

_"Godamnit!"_

Only a few hours from Namek, and they could still sense that wild, primal ki raging across the planet. Serah's energy. It had been brewing for some time time now-and oddly enough if hadn't abated. If anything it felt as though it were getting stronger! Once they made it, he reminded himself, they'd be able to sort it out between the two of them. Definitely. Maybe.

Hopefully.

Assuming there was a planet left once they arrived.

* * *

_(...?)_

* * *

It was happening all over again.

I couldn't stop.

I wanted to.

I really did.

I couldn't.

This time, it was all my fault.

I'd given in willingly in a fit of pique; yielded to the forces that had been scratching at the door ever since I'd first transformed not so long ago. I thought I could control it. I'd been wrong. You can't shackle the wind; it'll just slip right through your fingers. The same could be said for me.

Now that wrath had assumed direct control and there was no stopping them-me!-until it had its fill.

_Stop._

And I killed them.

_Stop!_

I killed them all.

**_STOP!_**

My hands beat against the invisible wall that separated me from my body, the unseen force that prevented me from taking control of my arms and legs. I beat at it until my hands were bloody, my knuckles rubbed raw. But my body kept killing, kept laughing, ripping into the Ginyu Force. Do you have any idea what that's like?! To see everything, _feel _everything, yet not be able to stop? To taste an enemy's fear in your mouth, to hear the screams of the dying as you tear them apart, limb by limb?

I do.

I could only curl into a ball, pray to forget, and wait for it to pass.

Until, finally, it did.

* * *

_(...?)_

* * *

By the time I finally came to, everything was red.

Everything.

Its hunger satiated, the beast retreated, leaving me locked in a state of being I didn't truly understand. My nerves scraped raw, I dared to survey the battlefied. By some miracle I'd spared Vegeta and Gohan, but only just. I could barely stand to look at the rest of the Ginyu force, to gaze upon their captain's mutilated corpse. Someone_-it was you, you fool A small part of my mind shrieked!-_had brutally dismembered him, ripped out his horns and jammed them, point-first, into his eyes. A bad way to go, the worst, in my mind. And I had been the one to kill him. Granted, he had been scum, but still...!

"Sis?"

I blinked, tearing my eyes away from the carnage. Gohan was staring at me as though I were a complete stranger. It probably had something to do with the gallons of purple blood dripping from my hands. To my shock however, he didn't cringe away when I looked at him. If anything, he seemed...puzzled.

"You look...different."

"Eh?"

"You! Woman! Too strong! Explain now!"

I turned at the sound of Vegeta's strangled voice, only to realize I was looking _down_ at the prince.

More so than usual.

Trembling hands rose to my face.

"Me." I croaked, staring at my bloodied palms. "It was me. I became that...thing again." some small part of me gloried in it, the look of shock flitting across his face. "The Legendary Super Saiyan."

"But I'm still here!"

My mouth twitched. "Do you really believe your hype that much?"

"I AM THE HYPE!"

I opened my mouth to answer, only to realize something. I-this body-shouldn't be this tall. My aura shouldn't still be shimmering intently around me, sickly green light illuminating my pale flesh. Alarm bells went off in my head, clamoring madly as my mind caught up with my body, reaching the inevitable conclusion.

I hadn't changed back.

_Shit._

I didn't feel anywhere near as restricted in this form as I should have. Now that the beast had retreated for the moment, I no longer had to devote myself -for the time being!- to fighting my own power. That should've been worrying in-and-of itself, but oddly enough, I felt wholly anything but. I felt...free. As if all my doubts and inhibitions had been stripped away by this transformation, all flickers of fear eradicated, and in their place a fierce, cleansing...relief. And something else. Something I daren't broach, daren't touch, but knew nevertheless. Desire.

Oh, god.

I couldn't stay like this. I was going to lose my mind or end up shagging someone. How the hell was I going to change back? _Could_ I change back? This wasn't me!

_"What's this? I see a bunch of idle hands, standing about!"_

Aaaaaaaaand just like that, the dread was back.

At first, I didn't rightly understand what I was looking at.

They'd taken up residence on a small hillock overlooking the battle, the perpetual suns to their back. As such it took me a fully thirty seconds to realize I wasn't staring at Frieza in his final form, but someone worse. The universe just loved throwing me curve balls, didn't it?! Yes, this was worse.

Much worse.

"C-C-Cooler?!" Vegeta all but choked. "What's he doing here?"

The icy tyrant all but ignored the prince.

"Hmm. Not a bad fight. Since you've clearly turned my brother down, why don't you come work for me instead?"

Wait, did he think...?

Vegeta snarled.

"Never!"

"I wasn't talking to you, monkey." the elder frost demon dismissed him with a negligent flick of his tail. "I was addressing the green one. You, there!" those eerie, bright red eyes flicked to me. "That's a fascinating form you have, there, saiyan. You ripped apart my brother's Ginyu Force as if they were rank amateurs." he laughed, eyeing the ashes of Ginyu and his once mighty men. "I dare say you could give my little shit brother a run for his money. What do you say? I have an opening in my armored squadron...?"

"I'm afraid I'll have to pass."

"Pity." Cooler drawled, shaking his head. "I'm afraid I'll have to kill you myself, then. Can't have people turning me down. Its bad from my reputation, you see."

"Don't suppose you'd be willing to give us a handicap...?"

I wasn't expecting the laugh.

"Ah, on the contrary!" Cooler cried! "You should be honored, really, my brother wouldn't even bother to acknowledge that new form of yours. He'd prattle on about how inferior you were, regardless." he spread his arms and planted his feet a pace back, his voice taking on a deeper octave. "He wouldn't even transform." Something about that familiar pose filled me with an ageless dread, as did the eerie dark energy swirling around him. "See, that's the difference between the two of us. Frieza likes to talk. I, on the other **hand...!"**

I'd been expecting the transformation, of course, but to actually witness it firsthand, well...

...it was absolutely terrifying.

Cooler's once wiry body all but exploded upright, his slender arms and legs rippling with bone and muscle as he gained height and mass. The hill shattered beneath his feet, leaving him to hang aloft in a darkening aura of ever-bleak purple. Massive sprouted on his wrists and ankles. Within moments he stood a head taller than me, the bony crest on his head now an angry spiked crown not unlike that of his race's second form. A mask molded of white bone slid into place over his visage, darkening his voice and completing the change in a matter of moments, leaving the frost demon to descend gracefully to the ground.

In hindsight, I really should have attack while he was transforming. Why didn't I _do_ that?!

Behind the mask, Cooler, Destroyer of Words grinned.

**"Tonight, I dine on monkey soup!"**

Say what you will about Frost demons..

_...they hit hard!_

**A/N: Okay. Slight lie, there. COOLER appears. Not Frieza. Because, lets face it, I think Goku/Vegeta deserve that kill, do they not? This chapter was a touch more serious than the others, but can promise you that we'll get back to the silly bits next chapter as well. And there we are! Harken to the return of this story!**

**So, in the Immortal Words of Atlas...**

**...Review, Would Ye Kindly? And of course enjoy the preview! Tis a merry little surprise! AND THERE BE THREE!**

**(Preview!)**

_**"DIE."**_

_"Urk!" Cooler choked wordlessly as the hand tightened around his throat, slender fingers inexorably constricting his windpipe. It was like an iron vice, one he could never hope to break, growing tighter with each passing second. Damn that witch and her lies! He'd had nothing but trouble ever since he'd set foot here! No wish was worth this! Even the lure of immortality meant nothing when you were already dead!_

_"Please...mercy...!"_

_...why?"_

_Incredibly, she gave it, dropping him._

_"Why did you spare me?"_

_The saiyan-demon, his mind gibbered!-stared at him stoically for a long moment, as though weighing her answer. Abruptly she relaxed out of the legendary form, her once amazonian build falling slack as she regressed to her base state. She looked tired. Weary. Fear kept him from striking as she turned her back he told himself. Fear...and something else. Who knew how quickly she could assume that form again? Any attempt to strike at her would only result in a shallow grave._

_"So...this is the power of your fifth form." she remarked. "Pity. With a bit of training, you might actually be a challenge."_

_"Then...you'd let me leave?"_

_"Who said anything about letting you leave? I just said I'd spare you, is all."_

_"But my ship-_

_Her eyes flicked over to the distant craft of which he spoke._

_"Oh, is **that** your ship?"_

_"Yes..._

_Incredibly, her grin grew._

_"Imma kill it."_

_"Don't you dare!"_

_"IMMA DO IT!"_

_A dull crash answered him not a moment later._

_"Damnit! I just paid that off!"_

* * *

_"What do you have to say for yourself, brother?"_

_The Frost Demon's tail crunched angrily against the ground, birthing a small crater. He almost pitied Frieza, really. His fool of a brother had no earthly idea what he was getting himself into, goading someone like that to fight him. And this time, Cooler wasn't inclined to step in and save the smug little shit. If he wanted to die so badly then it was his funeral. Losing to a saiyan galled him to no end, but he still had his life. Soon, his dear little runt of a sibling wouldn't have even that; not if he kept poking at this beast._

_"...pecking order."_

_"What?"_

* * *

_"Hey, Vegeta! Did ya miss me?!"_

_"GODAMNIT NAPPA!"_

**R&amp;R~! =D**


	9. Taming a Demon

**A/N: READ THIS AUTHORS NOTE FOR IT IS IMPORTANT.**

**XENOVERSE 2 IS OUT FOLKS AND I AM PUMPED! GET PUMPED! I've played the game from start to finish and it gave me ideas. LOADS of ideas. Turles and Slug on Namek? With COOLER?! My hands were all but writing the scene before I knew what was happening. And now I feel bad for Serah. She's about to be in the fight of her life, and worse, she's ALONE against three enhanced villains no less. Super Saiyan or no, you can only take on so many before your body breaks...**

**On another note, I may or may not be taking a short hiatus from writing for a bit after this due to health issues and the like. Illnesses aside, its EXHAUSTING to write something only to be viciously criticized over it or, barring that, little-to-no feedback at all. For example, I just walked back the latest chapter of Imperfection and made a new one when I realized something. I've never done that before. NEVER in my many years of writing. Not once. Yet I walked that chapter back****.**

**Now, I'm not a man who angers easily, yet the sheer vitriol I received for that chapter nearly had me throwing my computer against the wall. Add to that the persistent flamers as of late and this ANNOYING LITTLE FUCK who keeps making new accounts to harass me despite me repeatedly asking what his deal is, and later blocking him on every new account he creates...**

**...and that made me think.**

**Why do I write?**

**For you guys.**

**Not. For. Me.**

**I write these stories for everyone on this wonderful site, young and old alike, to entertain with the joy of words. To put a little joy and happiness back into this messed up world. To give back. That's what keeps me going. I've had some folk tell me my stories light up there day and give them hope. Words like that brighten my day. But when people accuse me of things like Naruto-worship and self inserts...it hurts. For starters, if its a crossover with Naruto, then YES he's going to be in it. If you want a story without Naruto read something else or one of my many other works. Don't attack me for it!**

**If there's no joy or hope to be had in doing this, well...**

**I guess it depends on the response.**

**I've also given thought to training a successor of sorts, so there's that. I mean with my health, I won't be around forever and one day, like it or not, my heart's going to give out. Hence the idea of an apprentice of sorts. Or two. Or three. Its kinda funny, really. Once I mentioned the idea of mentoring others, people were really perceptive to it. I've even picked out a handful of guys and girls who were receptive to taking up mantle, and more flock to the idea by the day.**

**Interested? Hit me up with a PM.**

**After all, is it not the duty of a man to help his fellow man? I like to think that it is, so in helping others, I'm giving back to this community. And in aiding writers, training others, I leave behind a new generation to carry on my work.**

**Not going to name names or anything at this time, but I'm fairly certain you know some of them. You'll see who they are when you see their works. And when that person or persons step forward and I fade into the background, you'll know that they have my blessing.**

**But hey, enough about me and passing away! I'm still alive for now!**

**And I promised you guys a chapter, did I not?**

**Here you go~!**

**ALSO, I TAKE NO CREDIT FOR TFS QUOTES AND MATERIAL WITHIN! **

**But enough about me! OFF WE GO Onto the next chapter of...**

**...NEVER A HERO~!**

**Remember, its always darkest before the dawn!**

**And the dawn is coming! I do not own this quote or any others!**

_"What did you do?"_

_"Alright, but you can't be mad at me."_

_"What. Did. You. Do?!"  
_

_"I may have...broke time."_

**_"WHAT?!"_**

_~?_

**Taming a Demon**

Remember when I said Frost Demons hit hard?

They do.

_Very_ hard.

In the instant that Cooler surged upward and I stepped forward to meet him, the plateau we were standing upon shattered. His knee slammed home into my stomach, cracking one of my ribs. My fist thundered unto his face, fracturing his mask. We spun away and the air came alive with a thousand fires of ki. From there I stopped thinking-then individual attacks lost all morality and meaning. When you're in an all out knockdown brawl against a Frost Demon, you don't pay attention to the little things; rather, you trust your instincts and hope to god you get lucky because if you don't, well...

You don't think.

You just feel.

You fight.

I was fighting for my_ life._

"Ah! I see how you thought you could handle my little brother!" Cooler grinned.

"Anyone ever tell you ya talk too much?!"

"You cheeky monkey!"

Strategy came flooding back as Cooler mistimed an attack and paid for it dear, feinting wide with his tail in an attempt to throw me off. Never one for subtlety, I didn't bother to dodge; instead I simply snagged the long appendage and made use of the opportunity. My arms went up, down, and around, sending the sneering demon flailing into a wide circle, whirling him about as though he were a children's spinning top. At the climax of the next revolution I released him, launching him through an island...

...aaaaaand he kept right on going.

Through said island.

Into the water.

Straight.

Down.

Despite my reservations, I sweatdropped. I really hadn't meant to throw him halfway through the planet and into the ocean. Said reservations vanished as the water began to seethe and bubble dangerously, a sure sign that the rough flight hadn't been enough to end my icy opponent. Yes! This was a fight I could enjoy! One I could...gah! Gritting my teeth against the urge, I felt the beast in me begin to growl and ruthlessly suppressed it, tamping down on the urge to attack, to run wild. Still it clawed at the door, fingers on my spine. I shook my head fiercely, tossing my hair side to side. No! Control! Don't lose control!

"Get up, lizard boy! I know this isn't enough to beat you!"

The bubbles vanished.

My eye twitched.

"Fine!" Flinging a hand before my face, my fingers went rigid. "If you won't come out I'll just blast you out!" Eyes narrowing, I began to channel ki to my palm. A sphere of burning blue brilliance ignited itself against the atmosphere, growing larger with each passing moment until finally, it rivaled the size of a small comet. Still no sign of movement below. Very well, then!

"BIG BANG-

_ZIP._

My only warning came from a sharp crack of high speed movement, followed by a howling streak of red across my vision. Instinctively, I threw myself aside and out of the blast's path. Not a moment too soon, as fresh pain blossomed across my torso; an angry red line scorching along the length of my exposed stomach. The Beast laughed at the near miss, and unbidden, a smile dawned on my dirty face.

"Ha! Missed-

Then the bastard clenched his fist and the ki blast imploded.

Cold fury burned the world white and a blacked out.

Just for a moment.

When my mind came to a heartbeat later, I was spinning across the horizon, covered in burns, my transformation still intact despite my momentary lapse in concsciousness. Creaking an eye open, I was rewarded by an expanse of spinning green sky and a rapidly approaching streak of purple. It took me another second to realize just how quickly Cooler was bearing down on me.

I was sure he said something, but I couldn't make it out over the ringing in my head_-there we go!_

-why won't you die?!"

Mountains crumbled as we collided anew, power-swollen fists bounding off one another-and each other-nearly everything in between. For every miss the ocean imploded. Every collision rent the sky. Cooler held nothing back, every blast and blow was meant to rip me apart, tear my head from my body. I didn't have that luxury. Now that the Beast had receded I was almost painfully aware of my actions, just as I was aware of the very faint power levels below and what would happen not if Cooler got his hands on them, but if I lost control.

Vegeta.

Yamcha.

Gohan.

They would die if the Beast turned its gaze on them. What good was this power if I couldn't control it?!

The fear of what might happen to them held me back, impeded me from fighting at my best.

Worse, it slowed me down.

Not so for Cooler.

_"Got you!"_

Fire blazed up my arm as a dark fist barreled past my hesitant guard and slammed into my right shoulder, shattering the armor there and bruising bone. Pain. It shocked me out of my battle rage and threw me off, the realization that I'd actually been _harmed_ for the first time since setting foot on Namek. That and something else. Cooler was strong. Far stronger than he'd been a few moments ago. And I knew why. Wild, dark energy hissed and spat around him, his blood red eyes seeming to glow as though lit from within. Faster, too, I realized a heartbeat later.

Something was wrong, here.

Namek dirt isn't all that different from Earth dirt.

Both taste horrible when someone makes you eat it.

Soil burst before my face as a three-toed foot slammed down my back, forcing me against the green, grassy soil and cratering the verdant ground. Okay, I rescind my statement. Namek dirt tastes worse. Like a senzu bean. Bland and tasteless. Well, that settled it. I was going to find Towa and fucking _murder _her for this.

"What's wrong, monkey?!" the frost demon's voice ripped through my thoughts like a wet paper bag, reminding me of where I lay. "You were talking the good talk back there! Where are your cheeky quips now?!"

Silently, I channeled energy to my good hand. It'd have to be quick.

"...Ka..."

Cooler blinked.

"What was that?"

"...me...

Turning my head, I spat out a wad of dirt and flung up my arm, palm open, towards his chest.

**_"HA."_**

"That doesn't make any sen-

And _that _ladies and gentlemen, was all he got out before a short, one-handed Kamehameha went off in his face. Not very strong, mind you, but more than enough to blind him. Singed, he stumbled back, momentarily forgetting me over the searing _pain in his everything._

"Gah! My eyes! What have you done?!"

"Enough! We're done here!"

That was all I needed.

A jarring headbutt staggered him, breaking his guard, another cracked his jaw. Cooler's counter set my ears ringing all over again, but I shouldered through the pain, and dove under his guard. For a fleeting instant, the faintest glimmer of shock shone on this ruby red eyes. I'd startled him with my tenacity, and he hadn't been expecting it. He'd been stunned and for the first time in his life, was genuinely at a loss for what to do. Before he could recover and muster a counterattack, I made that decision for him. The only way I knew how.

Shrieking, I pounced, tackling him to the ground.

Now, I know what you're thinking; driving a larger fighter down with nothing but sheer tenacity is never a good idea. All manner of things can go wrong, and against someone of Cooler's caliber-especially with him being enhanced by Towa-I could've easily gotten myself gutted for my sheer temerity. To be entirely honest, I wasn't thinking at the time. Rationally at least. The Beast slipped its leash and my vision went red. The next thing I knew, Cooler was down, I was up, and those large ruby red eyes were wider still.

"What?!" He squawked, the words muffled around his broken mask. "What are you do-

Landing firmly on his chest, I locked both legs around his sides, pinning him.

"Knocking some sense into you!"

Then I started swinging.

The first blow roared into his chin, fracturing it. The second and third screamed down into his chest, cracking armor. My fourth rammed into his chest, eliciting a bloody groan. By then I'd lost track of the rest, and there was no longer any rhyme no reason to my methods. I lost track of the sheer number of blows I rained down on him. I kept going, even after Cooler's struggles ceased and he went limp beneath me. I kept swinging until there was no longer any strength in my arms and my fingers had long since gone numb.

One last hit snapped down, one final strike.

"Guah!"

The final blow took him low in the stomach and dropped him, bruised knuckles driving up against the less-armored portion of his torso with the weight of a world's wrath. Cooler dropped to his knees with a dull wheeze, clutching at his dented stomach. Judging by the blood staining the mask, rivulets of violet streaking through the cracked bone, I'd hit something vital. As I looked on, saw the bloody mess I'd made of his face, a part of my cringed, flinched, drew aside from the raw violence I'd just committed.

With a long, shuddering sigh, I stood.

Green eyes met red.

And I exhaled.

_"Give up."_

* * *

_(...Cooler's Perspective...)_

* * *

"Give up."

Cooler stared up at the saiyan, hopelessly agape. Give up? What nonsense was this? He was superior! He was the strongest! All else were inferior! And yet he had lost. Badly. To have been beaten like this, for his pride to be sullied so...it was galling! More than anything he longed to stand, to destroy this cursed saiyan who'd bested him so. But his body betrayed him. He lacked not only the strength to move, but the will as well. For all his might, he simply couldn't bring himself to move after a beating like that.

And yet here, she let him go?

"How...How could an ape like you...

Those burning pupils found him, burned white.

_**"And what's so bad about being an ape, oi?!"**_

"Urk!" Cooler choked wordlessly as the hand tightened around his throat, slender fingers inexorably constricting his windpipe. It was like an iron vice, one he could never hope to break, growing tighter with each passing second. Damn that witch and her lies! He'd had nothing but trouble ever since he'd set foot here! No wish was worth this! Even the lure of immortality meant nothing when you were already dead! Something in him tried to must up a resistance and failed utterly. Wilted, as he stated into those wicked eyes.

In the end, the words surprised him.

"Please...mercy...!"

...as you wish."

Incredibly, she gave it, dropping him.

"Why did you spare me?"

The saiyan-demon, his mind gibbered!-stared at him stoically for a long moment, as though weighing her answer. Abruptly she relaxed out of the legendary form, her once amazonian build falling slack as she regressed to her base state. She looked tired. Weary. Fear kept him from striking as she turned her back he told himself. Fear...and something else. Who knew how quickly she could assume that form again? Any attempt to strike at her would only result in a shallow grave.

"So...this is the power of your fifth form." she remarked. "Pity. With a bit of training, you might actually be a challenge."

"Then...you'd let me leave?"

"Who said anything about letting you leave? I just said I'd spare you, is all."

"But my ship-

Her eyes flicked over to the distant craft of which he spoke. Their battled had carried them across the planet, enough to reveal its location, if only under intense scrutiny. He'd done well to hide it he thought...

...especially when he saw that smile.

"Oh, is **that** your ship?"

Cooler swallowed, deeply.

"Yes...

Incredibly, her grin grew.

"Imma kill it."

"Don't you dare!"

"IMMA DO IT!"

A dull crash answered him not a moment later.

"Damnit! I just paid that off!"

"Well, too bad." huffing, the saiyaness turned her dark gaze upon him. "I won't kill you. I don't like killing." An odd, distant look fell over her. "So, yeah, this is probably really stupid of me, but I'm going to let you go. If you promise to behave, I even have something for you.

Cooler blinked owlishly, as she held it up.

"What...is that?"

She grinned cheekily.

"Senzu-

That was all she managed before a hand opened her stomach from behind.

* * *

_(...Serah's Perspective...)_

* * *

"Well...shit...

Blood welled up in my mouth and I choked, spitting it out instinctively. My eyes looked down. Blinked. Blinked again, trying to understand the bloodied hand thrust through my stomach. There wasn't quite pain, no yet. Almost as if my body were still torn, trying to decide between numbness and shock, but the aching tear in my side was rapidly becoming an agonizing _ache _that engulfed everything else. At first, I thought Cooler might have been the one to attack, but no, he was still on the ground staring up at me, looking as baffled as I felt.

If not him, then who...?

"Mind if I cut in?" a throaty voice intruded on the haze of my thoughts.

A low groan escaped me.

"Oh, _fuck_ you and your puns."

Craning my neck, I struggled to see just who it was that'd attacked me. I didn't have to look far to see a familiar, spiky mop of hair. Goku? No, wait, not Goku. Goku didn't wear a scouter. He didn't have a tail. This was not Goku. It was like looking at a darker version of him, paler skin and grey armor. One I knew all too well.

Turles.

Of course he was here. Because fuck my life. Seriously, why did I always get the short end of the stick!

My wound chose that moment to throb.

Senzu bean.

Needed the senzu bean!

I'd dropped it sometime during the attack and now I couldn't find it, could barely see much less think and oh sweet baby jesus this hurt like a bitch...!

"Oh, right. Sorry." the wanderer hummed, as though remembering something. "Need to finish the job."

Then the hand slid out and there was pain.

All the world blurred and I vomited what little I'd eaten that morning. I wasn't even aware of dropping to my knees, much less the voices around me.

Cooler groaned, barely able to lift his head.

"Who are...?"

The dark saiyan sneered.

"Call me...an ally." a hand dipped behind his back, revealing a ghastly-looking fruit. "Behold, I come bearing gifts." He paused then, considering, appraising Cooler's bloodied, ruined state. "Although now that I think of it-I'd much rather save this for myself _and finish both of you off!_" Without further hesitation, he raised the spiky gourd to his mouth and bit down. I really should have stopped him from eating that fruit. A swell of fresh, dark power blasted me backwards, and the Frost Demon wasn't far behind.

"Be sure and leave some of her for me, Turles. I have a grudge to settle."

_Wait._

I knew that voice.

A pit of dread opened in my stomach.

Slug.

"Well, this isn't fair at all."

"Sorry," the-undead?-namekian made a show of cracking his neck. "Never took much stock in playing fair."

Grimacing, I settled back into a stance.

"Oh, for the love of-

Then things _truly _went pear-shaped.

* * *

_(...Meanwhile, in the Future...)_

* * *

_"She's going to die."_

Trunks started.

Violently.

"What?"

Mere moments ago his attention had been riveted upon the scroll, painstakingly watching events on Namek unfold piece by painful piece. And subsequently spiral out of control. With equal parts fascination and horror-alongside a morbid sense of humor-he'd watched his partner flail at event after event and try to stay true to the timeline. For the most part, she'd succeeded until they'd ventured into space. From there on out he had and the Supreme Kai of time had been forced to bear witness to all manner of time deviations until this very moment, when the universe itself threatened to spin out of wack.

And then she'd said those words.

The Time Nest suddenly felt colder, somehow.

"W-What are you talking about?" Restraining his rising dread, the half-saiyan turned to face the diminutive kai.

"If it was just Cooler, perhaps, but she's weakened herself. Now she's in no condition to take on two enhanced fighters at once." Grey eyes slid back to the scene unfolding in the scroll before them, observing the turning tide with a touch of despair then anguish as a second explosion obscured their view. "She's a real fighter, I'll give you that. But Towa's enhanced them far beyond their limits. Add to that the effect of the Tree of Might, and she's out-matched. Even in that new form of hers, if she continues this fight alone, she'll exhaust herself. And once she does...

Trunks blinked. "Three...?"

"It seems Towa is more capable of twisting time than I thought." Pursing her lips, she shot him a glower. "Not only has she drawn Cooler onto Namek, but somehow, she's managed to snatch Turles and Slug as well."

"Slug? But he was...!"

"He _was_. Not anymore."

Trunks refused to believe it.

Were they really considering this?

Just leaving her there to die?

Because she would die.

If they did nothing.

In pain, crying.

_Alone._

Serah had fought so hard to preserve history, despite her initial mistakes. She'd scratched and clawed her way through everything thrown at her, and outright _flailed_ when she wasn't strong enough. Somehow, she had always found a way through. Not the easy way mind you. Always the hard way. She never backed down, never shirked her duties, never shrank from a fight. She could've easily fled and ruined history yet she sought to maintain it. In spite of the disruptions created by her very presence, she fought on. She even delivered mercy to those she'd bested. He wanted to believe now, as he had then, that she would find a way.

Not this time.

"We have to do something! If we don't...

The Supreme Kai of Time fixed him with a stern look.

"We _shouldn't_ have let her meddle with time to begin with!" At his questioning stare, the diminutive kai palmed her face and amended her previous statement. "Don't you get it? She's a _part _of it now! Pulling her out at this point, even if we could-which we can't!-would cause history itself to collapse! So would sending you in for that matter! Right now, we can't do anything but waaaa_aaaaaatareyoudoing?!"_

He words dissolved into a startled yelp as the time patroller surged forward and snatched up the scroll. It didn't matter if he couldn't physically enter the past as he was now. He needed only his voice.

_**"FATHER!"**_ He roared at the scroll! "Are you just going to let her die?!"

At that moment the parchment changed.

Trunks found himself hissing in surprise as the cold paper clutched in his hands suddenly became hot to the touch. Then if flung itself out of his grasp-no, it leaped. Literally. As though it had a physical will of its own it tumbled forward onto the table and began to unfurl even further. Instead of burning a dark, tainted violet, those twisted threads now spun with the color of gold. And the scene in the scroll changed.

Warped, from one of death and despair into something else.

What he saw there made his heart grow bold.

"This is...!"

* * *

_(...Back in the Past...)_

* * *

Namek trembled.

Waves of blistering power crested outwards as combatants collided once again in their grand melee, blows like thunderclaps cratering heaven and earth. Clouds parted, sundered with a single blow. The soil shook as a wild blows were intercepted, parried, flung out again. The oceans boiled when blazing beams of ki collided, vying for supremacy. With each successive strike, one could feel one of the three powers wane. Three titans, not one, not two, fought it out amongst themselves. A trio of unstoppable beasts in a knockdown, no holds-barred battle to the death.

And Vegeta was forced to bear witness to it all.

The Prince of all Saiyans saw the battle from afar as little more than a series of vicious blurs across the horizon; as it had been since Cooler had first transformed and hurled Serah into a mountain. He understood that. Accepted it, albeit begrudgingly. What he _didn't_ understand was just where these two new powers had come from, or whom they even belonged to. Only that they seemed to ally themselves with Cooler and against the proud saiyaness's dauntless might. That riled him all the more. She was fighting for her life against three foes without honor, and he was _here _babysitting these earthlings!

It was galling.

Absolutely galling!

His pride couldn't stand it!

_'ARE YOU JUST GOING TO LET HER DIE?!'_

Vegeta stiffened.

_'What was that voice just now?! W__hy am I-_

-are we still standing here?!'

The prince blinked as Gohan's voice cut into his thoughts like a rusty knife; then his brief moment of shock transformed into ire as he glared down at the boy. Just now he'd unwittingly spoken his own thought but anger choked the sentiment out of him.

Bad enough he had to deal with that Yamcha idiot, but this...!

"And just what do you suppose we should do, brat?!" A gloved hand lashed out, catching the lad by the scruff of his collar and hoisting him upwards. "Throw our lives away?!"

A distant scream drew a flinch out of them, and the earth shook once more, drawing a collective flinch.

His recent zenkai had left him even more powerful than before, with strength he'd never dared dream of. Yet he knew he was still no match against the all-encompassing strength of Cooler's transformations, much less that of these new fighters. First that woman surpassed him, then that damnable Frost Demon, now these imbeciles?! His once boundless pride had been beaten and battered, left to seethe at these perceived slights. He hated Frieza's race, despised them beyond measure.

_'Yet here I am, standing here like a coward?!'_

* * *

_(...Serah's Perspsective...)_

* * *

Ever taken a ki beam to the leg?

Its not fucking fun.

Not one bit.

Nope!

I was still trying to figure out just _where the hell _Turles and Slug had come from when the latter took advantage of my distraction and shot me in the thigh. I didn't so much see the thin sickly saffron beam as I did _feel _it; the burning golden line searing a white-hot bar through my right leg. A strangled scream forced its way past my lips and I struck back, leveling the namekian with a spinning kick, only to falter as a blast of scorched into my back, driving me into the dirt.

I experienced the most fleeting rush of anger before my wound throbbed, forcing me back to my knees. In this state I couldn't even fight properly, much less transform.

_Why can't the dead stay dead?!_

Such thoughts filled my mind as I spun away, catching a blow, flinging Turles away. For what good it did me. Slug rushed to fill his place, a lengthy green arm coiling out to hurl me away into the saiyan's next salvo. All of my strength was focused on survival, on staying alive, staunching the blood staining my gi. I fought with all I had and more.

And I.

Just.

Didn't.

Have.

It.

Cooler, Turles and now Slug?! I didn't remember the game being like this! Not at all! Especially since I distinctly remembered _killing _the latter! Yet here he was, trying his damndest to rip my head off. Oh, this was going to end poorly if I didn't find a way out of here...!

"You're durable, I'll give you that." Slug's voice called out as I stumbled upright. "But how long can you la-gack!"

...as long as it takes."

His smile faltered as a weak ki blast slammed into his side, staggering him.

To my disbelief I found that _Cooler _had been the one to blast the evil namekian, though as I looked on, he slumped over, reverting to his fourth form.

"You?!"

"Don't get the...wrong idea." he ground out. "I want to be the one to defeat you. That's all it is!"

"I can't believe you'd side with that bitch!" Slug growled. "Have you lost your mind?!"

"Silence, Namek! This is not your affair!"

For a fleeting moment, I thought Slug was going to ignore Cooler's insult and attack me again. Instead he turned, advancing on the mortally wounded Frost Demon with purpose. I thought I saw Cooler climb to his feet, but that might have had something to do with the massive blood loss and the fact that I was _dying _at the moment.

"Don't kill her, saiyan." he called over his shoulder. "That privilege is reserved for me."

"That wound must hurt horribly." Turles crooned, ignoring his comrade. "Its a shame you lost that last bean."

"Fuck off you cheeky dick-

Pain blasted up my back.

I tasted blood when I breathed.

My foes circled me like sharks; they'd seen me bleed, and now they intended to finish me off.

"I will never die. Even if this body breaks...someone else will take my place!"

"Brave words." Turles snorted. "Sadly irrelevant in the grand scheme of things, but still...

I coughed blood as an elbow drove me into the ground.

...points for effort."

_"Damnit!"_

Regardless of my transformation, I wasn't used to fighting so many foes at once. I could feel the strain beginning to show, my body starting to slow, muscles tearing as I took their attacks. Perhaps Turles and his allies knew this. Mabye they simply intended to wear me down until I was too weak to do anything more than flail at them. Perhaps that was their plan. Keep attacking until I fell apart. Whatever it was, I wasn't willing to let them have there way. I would die here if they did. And if I died...

_'You don't get a restart in this life, remember?'_

Oh.

Oh, shit.

This was going to _suck._

Still, I did have one last ace...

* * *

_(...Vegeta...)_

* * *

He was going to run.

That settled it; Vegeta had decided to fleet. He was going to get the hell off this backwater world and hide away until this blew over. Maybe go to Frieza Planet 419. No one went to Frieza Planet 419. Still anything was better than sticking around to face those two powers after they finished mopping up the woman. No, he told himself, he wasn't running, this was just a strategic retreat. He'd be back with a vengeance, and then, then they would rue the day the'd crossed him. All of them! Rue! So much ruing!

The once proud prince had just made up his mind to retreat when a piercing whistle penetrated the fog of his mind.

_'Hello?'_ a familiar voice penetrated the fog of his thoughts,_ 'Is this thing on? Hellloooo~?'_

"Why are you in my mind, woman?!"

_'I'm not in your mind. I'm speaking to you telepa-oomph! Right in the kidney!' _After a pause, her ragged voice returned._ 'Look, I need a favor. Its a big one. I don't think I can take these guys as I am now. I want you to take Yamcha and Gohan and get out of here. Run. As far away as you can.'_

_"Have you lost your mind?!"_

_"If I die then I die. But I want them to live. Help me out here, will ya?_

He didn't know where that last thought had come from. Didn't matter. Her power was flickering, failing, faltering, _fading _as the battle went on. Stretched to her very limits, the Super Saiyan fought on for the sake of her friends and

"Alright, Vegeta, you're out of excuses!" Yamcha growled! "They're going to kill her!"

"Bullshit! They could just knock her out, or-

"We don't have dragon balls, Vegeta!"

_'She's going to die if you don't do something!'_

He didn't know where that voice had come from just now.

This was all so strange; having only known her for such a short time, Vegeta reasoned he shouldn't have felt anything for her. Far less at the pretense of her passing. She had been his enemy until recently. He'd sworn-vowed, really-to take revenge on her for the humiliating she'd inflicted upon him. By rights if she died here and now, he'd have his vengeance. And yet the idea of the warrior giving her life, of dying alone and forgotten on some backwater planet, it rankled him somehow. This was not a deserving death. She deserved better.

Serah was a Super Saiyan, after all.

She deserved to die at his hand.

But she wouldn't. She would die at the hands of another, and all because he was too powerless to prevent it. Another saiyan life extinguished. A true saiyan. One who took pride in their-their!-race, who valued strength above all else, who fought with raw, unrelenting passion. Yet a saiyan who was also merciful, compassionate. Kind. Hers was a strange life, one he wasn't sure he understood. Or even wanted to understand. Perhaps he was afraid of knowing what she was, what she could become, what her life might be..

And he, the Prince of all Saiyans, was about to let her forfeit that life.

While he stood here like a fool, cowering in fear of the unknown.

If she, a low class warrior was willing to die...

...then what did that make him?

Simple. It made him a-

Something snapped.

_**"DAMNIT!"**_

Anger.

Vegeta's head snapped back, veins standing out in his forehead. Gold flashed through his hair, brightened, dimmed. The power eluded him, slipping out of his gloved grasp when he sought it, reached for it, only to have it slip away. And for a moment, he despaired.

Why wasn't he stronger?!

Why didn't he have that strength?!

He wanted-no, needed that power! Here! Now!

_NOW!_

A great cleansing tide rushed through him and suddenly, he found he didn't care anymore. A powerful anger, pure in its intensity, raw and cleansing. All else burned away before it. He didn't care. About his race, about his pride about anything. For a fleeting instant he was free, weightless, unbound. Unshackled from all of the emotions that had been pent up inside of him. He did not see his eyes burn green, did not feel the ground all but crater beneath his boots, never noticed the horrified awe of the half-saiyan brat and that useless earthling.

"W-What the?!" Gohan yelped!

"Holy hell!" Yamcha cried! "What did he just do?!"

Snatches of sound were coming back to him now, but Vegeta barely noticed them at all.

There was only the enemy.

"I WILL NOT STAND FOR THIS!"

With a roar, he flung himself forward into the fight!

* * *

_(...Once More With Me...)_

* * *

This.

Was.

The.

Worst.

Pain.

"Are you sure about that?" Turles sneered, grinding his boot against my chest. "Maybe its this? Or this? Or _this?!"_

I wasn't sure when I stopped cursing him and started screaming, only that my throat had long since gone raw. I couldn't think, couldn't function, could barely breathe. My vision swam with dark spot, curling at the edge even as I fought to cling to life. Where was that damn bean? I needed that bean...if I didn't have it, I...I was going to...to...why can't I...no...not like.._.not like this..._

_"Mineminemine..._

"Is that all?" he sneered. "I thought the Legendary Super Saiyan would be stronger than this.

_"Minemineminemine..._

I bit back a frown, spitting blood. What was that noise? No, wait...it sounded almost familiar...

"What in the hell...

_...mineminemineminemine..._

No. I would've laughed, if _someone _hadn't punctured my lung. I was certain it was growing louder, a rising chant thrumming in my ears like an endlessly incessant animal bleat. I should know. I'd used the phrase before with great relish. What was that? What even _was _that? Who, for that matter? It sounded a good deal like a certain proud Saiyan prince, but no, even _he _didn't possesses a power level of this magnitude. Whatever it was it seemed to be growing larger, faster...louder...

_...minemineminemineminemine..._

Turles didn't seem to hear it at all.

"Is that it?, Well, then, lets end-

**_"MINE!"_**

The wanderer's words withered away as a white, gloved fist thundered into the side of his visage.

"Vegeta?!"

A wall of ki plowed into Turles from behind, staggering the drifter backwards like a drunken braggart before he could administer the final blow. The sneering saiyan stumbled in surprise, barely having time to register the unexpected _kiai_ before a blast of gold cannoned into him, flattening him against the grass ribs and breaking bone. A pair of white boots filled his vision, lit as though from within by golden ki. Said boot snapped out, nigh but launching the startled saiyan away, and for a fleeting instant, I was rewarded with a flash of gold hair.

A Super Saiyan.

It might have been the blood loss, but I'm pretty sure I started laughing.

Despite my broken ribs and my wounds, I managed a bloody smile.

"You...have impeccable timing for a short person."

Green, bloodshot eyes snapped towards me.

"Woman, If you die I swear I'm going to haunt you."

I blinked. Frowned. Blinked again.

"Tha...that's not how it works...

My eyes rolled back and the ground rushed up to meet me.

**A/N: VEGETA THROWING DOWN?! COOLER ALLIED WITH THE GOOD GUYS?! HAVING SOOOO MUCH FUN WITH THIS! AND WHERE ARE GOKU AND NAPPA?! Its going to be one hell of a brawl next chapter, so I hope you're all prepared for it as we wind up the Namek saga! **

**So, in the Immortal Words of Atlas...**

**...Review, Would Ye Kindly? And of course enjoy the preview! Tis a merry little surprise! AND THERE BE TWO THIS TIME!**

**(Preview!)**

_"Ufufufufufu..._

_A slim hand locked around my weakened wrist._

_"Just a moment. Let's not be too hasty..._

_Flinching, I drew back._

_"W-Wha? Get off!"_

_Not good. _

_Not only was I running horribly low on energy, but there was something in that gaze. Something...disconcerting. And more than a little worrying. If I didn't know better I'd say that was lust lurking in those bright eyes of hers, but no, that couldn't possibly be right. Something in me quailed at the sight of it. It wasn't exactly _dangerous _mind you, but my sixth sense was being irrational and shrieking like an absolute madwoman, gibbering that I needed to get away from her, escape before she ravaged me like...well, shit. I couldn't think of an analogy to match that dreamy look in her eyes._

_"You've done a marvelous job, passing all my little tests." she purred, stroking my face. "Now, then...care to assist me in a little experiment?"_

_"E-Experiment?"_

_"Don't worry, its absolutely harmless."_

_Her smile became decidedly dark, then._

_...not that you have any say in it."_

**_"Like hell!"_**

* * *

_(...Omake...?)_

* * *

_"Hey, Vegeta! Did ya miss me?!"_

_"GODAMNIT NAPPA I AM A SUPER SAIYAN! I WILL END YOU!"_

_"Should I tell her about the time you were a prison..._

_"Don't you say it! _

_...bitch."_

_"Okay, that's just...I can't..._

_"STOP LAUGHING WOMAN!"_

**R&amp;R~! =D**


End file.
